The Masquerade Ball: A New Beginning
by Kiwi-San
Summary: was called So Near Yet So Far! As Christmas comes closer, awful news comes to Hermione and Draco: Their parents were killed by the same man named Lucius Malfoy. Heartbroken, they find peace with each other, but that can only last for so long...DMHG
1. Chapter One

**A/N: Hmm…this is a story that just came into my mind while I was in my car going to my grandma's house…**

* * *

Draco Malfoy and his goons stalked the halls of Hogwarts, bullying the younger students- preferably the first years, they did it worse than ever these days because they were now officially seventh years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They had to make sure that they would be feared and respected for always and forever.

Today, their main purpose wasn't the younger students; today it was Hermione Granger, the "filthy little mudblood." Sure, there were many other muggle-borns, but Draco Malfoy, the most feared seventh year, especially disliked Hermione. She was a know-it-all, top of the class, and that bugged the hell out of him. What's worse, she was friends with Harry Potter, another one on Draco's Hate List.

He had threatened a first year Gryffindor to see if Hermione was in the common room with no success…he bullied the little boy until he had Pansy check all the girls' bathrooms; Hermione wasn't there either. They checked some of the classrooms they knew she had, thinking she was checking her homework with the teacher before they had class. She wasn't there either.

"One more place that Granger would be in," said Draco. His steely gray eyes were slit in frustration. He had a hand in his pocket and the other was moving his blonde hair out of his eyes. On one side of him walked Pansy Parkinson. A pug face girl who dotes on Draco. On the other side was Crabbe. He had a pudding-bowl shaped haircut and long gorilla-like arms. Draco seemed to have a slightly higher opinion of him than of Goyle, because Goyle was walking behind the group. He had a short, bristly hair and arms like Crabbe. He is extremely dim.

They entered the library and searched through it. "It seems that the mudblood had other plans today," said Pansy. She sighed and shook her head. "Where in bloody Hogwarts come Granger be?"

"Out in the grounds?" suggested Crabbe. He shrugged his shoulders.

"It's worth a try," answered Pansy. She looked at Draco, waiting for his say-in.

"Okay, let's go," said Draco. He led them to outside the Hogwarts giant door and stopped in thought. "I can't believe were going through all this trouble for Granger."

"It will be rewarding though, to watch her cry in humiliation and embarrassment and inferiority," giggled Pansy. "Just thinking about it makes me excited."

"Let's go look around the lake then," said Draco. Without giving them a chance to argue (although it wouldn't matter what they said), he walked off in the direction of the lake. He rolled up the sleeves of his uniform because he was expecting Ron and Harry with her; an obvious fight was to start. But, as he turned to face the shore of the lake, he suddenly stopped walking; the other's gently colliding into him, but he didn't get angry. He cocked his head to the side. "It seems the little mudblood is all by her lonesome. We should be nice and give her company." Draco laughed and started to walk closer when he sense something was not right here.

As they got a little closer, she hadn't noticed them, which surprised the group of Slytherins. Draco was the first to notice the black envelope beside her. He noticed that Hermione was hugging her knees to her chest and that her whole body was shaking. He stopped walking and held out his arms to stop Crabbe, Pansy, and Goyle.

"Why did we stop?" asked Goyle.

"Shush! Don't you see the letter she has?" whispered Draco. He glared dangerously at the three of them. "It's as black as black can be. Meaning, she just lost someone."

"And we care because…?" asked Pansy as cold and heartless as ever.

Draco glared at her. "I am not going to mess with her or even be around her…and neither are you three."

"Since when have you been so caring and since when have you not want to torture Granger?" hissed Pansy.

"Since my mother was murdered," simply stated Draco like is wasn't a big deal at all to him. He walked off. His invisible mask that held his emotions was falling.

The others stared at him as he walked away. They blinked in disbelief. Did Malfoy just walk away like that? He did. He had spent the whole afternoon looking for her and when he had finally found her, sitting by herself at the lake, he left her alone…that wasn't the Malfoy they knew. Not at all.

"He never told us that," muttered Pansy. "I can't believe I didn't realize it! And I know why I didn't…he never shows any emotion like sadness or love, only anger and hate." She stared at his retreating back. "Why? Why are you like that?" She looked at Crabbe and Goyle, tears swelling in her eyes. "What? He can't trust us-me-with that stuff? Why is he holding in all his pain?" Pansy ran off, crying. She didn't go the way Draco did, but around the lake. She ran past Hermione who didn't even notice.

Goyle and Crabbe stared at each other and tempted to follow Draco, even though Draco has already entered the castle.

* * *

That morning, Hermione sat with Harry and Ron, laughing and talking about the school year so far. The mail post arrived and Hermione watched cheerfully as Ron opened a box of early Christmas presents from Mrs. Weasley. He passed them to Harry, Hermione, and Ginny. They each got a different colored sweatshirt and an assortment of goodies.

Hermione looked up at the swarm of owls, looking for a gift or a letter from her parents. When neither showed, she shrugged it off thinking they haven't mailed it off yet, seeing as it was Christmas Eve.

A bunch of students stayed home for the holidays because their parents thought it safer to be at Hogwarts than at home. Hermione and Ron were so determined to stay by Harry's side at all times, they had declined the requests to come home for Christmas.

"I'm going to put away my gifts, I'll be right back," said Hermione. She shrunk everything and put them in her pocket before heading up to the Gryffindor Tower. She muttered the password (_'Faia'_) and went up to the girls' dormitory and to her bed. It wasn't until she had out everything in her trunk that she noticed a black letter on her bed.

She knew what this letter meant. She knew when could be written on it and it wasn't a good thing. She wished with all her heart that it wasn't for her. With trembling hands, Hermione reached out and grabbed the letter. She slowly sat down on her red and gold clad bed and read her name, house, and tower on it. Already, her eyes watered. She carefully opened the letter and read it, eyes becoming more watery with each word.

_Ms. Granger,_

_We are dreadfully sorry, but your parents, Mr. and Mrs. Granger were murdered by death-eaters on You-Know-Who's orders. By wizards especially trained at investigating crime scenes, we have discovered the murderers: Bellatirx Lestrang and Lucius Malfoy. We are trying our best to find them._

_Minister of Magic_

Hermione ran out of the girls' dormitory, into the common room, passing Harry and Ron without a word, and ran until she got out to the lake where she collapsed, her legs wanting nothing else but rest.

"Hermione!" yelled Harry and Ron as they collapsed near her. Hermione didn't look up at them, but continued crying into the snow.

Ron picked up the letter and read it. "Oh, Hermione…" was all he could say. He couldn't think of anything to say that would make it all better.

"It hurts! I'm hurt! I can't do this anymore! I can't go on!" cried Hermione. She sobbed harder into the snow, her tears slightly melting to pure white snow.

"Hermione! You can't talk like that! Look at Harry, he hasn't given up!" protested Ron.

"This isn't the same! I grew up with my parents! I knew and loved my parents! Harry can't even remember his except for memories that aren't even his and that stupid mirror!" cried Hermione. She gasped when she realized what she had just said and looked at Harry.

Harry stared back at her in disbelief. Like it was his fault his parents were killed! Like he had a choice to either grow up with his parents or have them killed! "Come on Ron, it seems like she doesn't want us now," coldly said Harry. Ron couldn't believe the conversation they had. They never got into this big of a fight before! He couldn't believe what Hermione had said, so he chose Harry's side and left her alone.

Hermione sat up and pulled her legs to her chest and cried into her knees. That was when Draco and his gang stopped by.

* * *

Draco walked into his dormitory after seeing Hermione at the lake with the horrid black letter. Just weeks prior, he had received the same dreadful letter about his mother being murdered. He sat on his green and silver clad bed and put his head in his hands.

Since it was Christmas Break, there were no classes, so Draco went to the Room of Requirement. He wanted no one to bother him, and the room granted that wish by hiding the door. Not even someone who knew about the room would be allowed in.

Draco thought for a crackling fire, a bean bag chair, and a couple of books he might read if he was bored enough. He sat in the bean bag chair and stared into the fire, images of his mum flooding his mind. Tears started to fall slowly to the floor. Suddenly, Hermione and her black letter came to his mind. Draco wiped his eyes and stared off into the fire, but not taking in its warmth.

"I wonder if she's still out there…" said Draco to himself. "Well, I have nothing better to do…" He left the Room of Requirement and walked down the Grand Staircase. He looked at his watch and decided there was plenty of time before curfew. He reached the Entrance Hall fifteen minutes later. Walking out on the grounds, he was right. Hermione sat in the same spot all day. She wasn't freezing; she had a shield spell around her with plenty of leg space. Before her was a little blue fire.

Draco dropped himself onto the snow next to her shield and stared at the frozen lake. He didn't say anything, but waited for her to say something first…she would say anything to him.

"I'm not in the mood Malfoy," Hermione said a few moments later. "Go away."

"I know how you feel," said Draco, ignoring Hermione's command.

"How can you possibly know how I feel?" snapped Hermione. "You have no idea!"

"How do you know that?" Draco asked calmly. He looked at her glaring brown eyes with his silver calm eyes. "My mother was murdered." He sighed. "She was murdered by a death-eater…my father…" Draco closed his eyes, refusing the tears that wanted to fall so badly.

Hermione stared at him. "I…I'm sorry…I didn't know…" she muttered. She let her shield fall and made a new one to include Draco. "My parents were…murdered by two death-eaters…Lucius Malfoy…and Bellatrix Lestrange." She wasn't looking at anymore; instead, she fell back onto the grass and stared at the sky.

"Where's Potter and Weasley?"

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. Common room I'd assume. We got into a fight earlier. I said something I shouldn't have…" She looked over at his back because he was still sitting up. "Can I ask you something?"

Draco shrugged and fell back onto the grass. "Go ahead."

"What made you come to talk to me?"

Draco stared at the clouds. Hermione thought he wasn't going to answer, so she stared back at the clouds. "I…I don't know actually…I wasn't sitting by myself, thinking of different things…that's when I remembered you and your black letter," Draco said softly. "I couldn't help, but to remember what I went through when I got my letter a couple weeks ago. It…it's not a great feeling. I also wondered if you were out here freezing…guess I was wrong…you're smarter than that."

Hermione didn't say anything for a little bit, instead she enjoyed the silence. A few minutes passed and Hermione decided to finally break the silence. "Why are we doing this? Why am I still here?"

Draco blinked in confusion and looked at her for a moment, then back at the sky. "I don't know. Aren't we supposed to hate each other? Why though? I never seen any rules that say so…and…blood…is just blood right?" Draco blinked in confusion. Was what he was taught all his life wrong? He furrowed his brows.

"We're so close…yet…so far away…" Hermione was also confused. She sat up and ran a shaky hand through her hair. She was shaking, not from the cold since she had a little fire, but because she hadn't ate anything since breakfast. She closed her eyes.

"You haven't ate all day, have you?" asked Draco. She shook her head. He sat up and reached into his pocket to see if he still had the shrunken candy and pastries he had stolen from a Hufflepuff first year. He pulled some out and put them to their original sizes with his wand. "Here." He gave her a pumpkin pastry.

Hermione took it. "Thanks." She took a bit out of it and chewed and sallowed it. "Why are doing this?"

"I'm starting to think that my whole life has been wrong," Draco watched as her face became confused. "I was always taught that muggles and wizard and purebloods were supreme."

"But, Voldemort is a half-muggle."

"Yeah, I know, but I didn't question it. I got slapped for speaking ill of him," said Draco. "Now and this morning I realized that we aren't all that different."

Hermione smiled and moved closer to him. Draco pale cheeks turned a light pink that was very visible. Hermione leaned on his shoulder, a light pink tint to her cheeks too. She intertwined her fingers with his and closed her eyes.

Draco took a deep breath to calm his nerves and closed his eyes, leaning his head on hers.

* * *

**A/N: Hello, well, you obviously read the story, or you wouldn't be way down here…unless you like to read the A/N's first before the story. Anyway, um…what do you think? Should I make it into a long story? Or keep it like this? If I was to make it into a long story, then I would take out "Hermione smiled and moved closer to him…." So, please tell me what you would like me to do with it…thanks mucho!**

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**A/N: November 20, 2005**

**With the help of my lovely reviewers, I'm going to keep going with this one. It's going to be great I hope. It was six saying that they wanted to go on and two said that it would be fine as it. I think you are both right. But I believe the story will be better longer.**

**Actually…I decided to keep the ending part that I said I was going to delete. I just got a wonderful idea, with the help of marajade64.**

**Okie, now I thank the reviewers.**

**Zarrco: Yes, you are right. Reading the friendship will be great…if my story turns out to be great. heh. Thanks for always reviewing, its greatly honored I guess….lol…that wasn't the word I was looking for, but ok.**

**Em: I love those situations. The ones your trapped in without control. Its great. and entertaining.**

**Galleena: Yeah, I hate the same stories, just rewritten some. Although, some of my less great stories do that….heh…**

**Fallen Flower: I know. I've only read like two stories that mention that Voldemort is a half-born…I'm glad I added that line. It really fits. It is good as a one-shot, but good as a story too…that's why I had to ask the world basically lol.**

**Ilovethevampireslayerandharrypotter: thanks**

**Lovethe only escape: agreed. Thanks for the advice!**

**Marajade64: yeah, thanks for the suggestion. I decided to use it. Thanks mucho! Hehehehe**

**Kim: Will do!**

**Ponee: yeah same hehehehhhhee**


	2. Chapter Two

**A/N: Sorry for the wait...when was the last time i updated? i can't remember, bu i know it's might two or three weeks right? Well, as i say in all my recent fanfics, school's a killer. i'm so glad friday is last day of school and then winter break! that means i actually have time to write my stories! yay! well, enough of me blabbering, here's the chapter!**

* * *

They sat by the lake for a while before Hermione reminded them that they were going to miss curfew. They walked a few feet away from each other, both bright red and speechless. Once they got into the castle, Draco went down to the dungeons without a word. Hermione went to the Gryffindor Common Room in great thought.

As she expected, Harry and Ron were at the couches by the fire, playing Wizards' Chess/ Hermione walked up to them, "I'm sorry about earlier. It was very rude of me."

Harry stood up to face her. "It's okay," he said as he hugged her. "Friends?"

"Forever and for always," smiled Hermione. She sat down on one of the chairs. "Okay, let me see your essays while you two play your game." They handed her their essays and Hermione started to go over them, crossing stuff out here and there.

* * *

Draco immediately walked to his dormitory without bothering to talk to anyone. He planned to go to bed, alone, to think about what had just happened down by the lake. His idea of alone was crushed when he saw Pansy sitting on his bed. Her face was downcast and she wasn't acting like herself. On a normal day, she would have jumped up and run over to him. Tonight, she didn't even look up. Despite the face that he didn't particularly like Pansy, he was a little worried.

"Pansy? Is something wrong?" asked Draco. He stared at her. She looked up at him, watery eyed. _'Oh no! I'm no good with tears!'_

"You could have told me," said Pansy she didn't get up, just continued to play with the fuzz on Draco's blankets.

Draco sighed. "I didn't tell anyone because I don't want any pity; I don't want any sorrow, I don't need any of that." Draco looked at her with emotionless eyes. "I don't want or need it from you either."

"Why are you like this?" cried Pansy. Draco cocked a brow at her. "Why do you wear an invisible mask? Why do you hide your emotions like you do?" She stood up, tears flowing out of her eyes like rivers.

"For the same reasons that I didn't tell anyone about my mother. I don't want any emotional relationships with anyone. I don't need anyone. I'm a lone wolf. I fend for myself," explained Draco. "Now, I'm going to bed. Leave."

She walked past him and stopped at the door. She looked over her shoulder at him. "I hope you can find someone who'll open your heart. Who you can be yourself around." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I can't be that girl. I know that now." She opened the door and left, closing it behind her.

Her last words left him standing there, more confused than ever. Someone he can open up to? He walked to his bed and sat on it. Now that he thought about it, he started to lose his emotional mask when he was around Hermione Granger earlier. What was it about her that he could, tin time, become himself around her? That thought kind of scared him. Especially because of what he was and what she was, and because he didn't really know who he was.

All he saw when he looked in the mirror was his father. Almost like a clone. He looked just like his father and acted just like him too. Now, sitting here, thinking about it, he hates himself. He hates how his father treats him and his mother. He hates how he worships Voldemort's every move. He hates his father to the depths of his soul.

"So why the hell am I just like him!" yelled Draco. He was thankful no one else was in bed yet or they would yell at him to shut the hell up. He fell back onto the pillows and stared at the ceiling of his dormitory. "Argh!" He rolled over on his side and stared at the wall. "Dammit! I don't want this! I wish I never went back to that lake! Dammit Granger! Dammit Pansy! Look what you both made me think about!" He closed his eyes and waited for sleep to take him. It took a couple hours before he actually got to sleep.

* * *

Hermione woke up to the cries of Harry and Ron. They were yelling at her to hurry up, so they could go eat. "Go ahead and go without me!" she yelled. She was thankful that her roommates had already woken up and left.

"You sure?"

"Yes, go ahead. You want to eat before class right?"

"Okay, we'll see you down there then!"

"'Kay!" Hermione took a quick shower and used a drying spell on herself. She grabbed a pair of her Hogwarts robes and threw them on over the Hogwarts uniform. She walked out of her dormitory and stopped in the common room. _'What will I do if I see Malfoy? We had an…awkward…conversation last night…then we…cuddled…'_ She thought. "What was I thinking?" she muttered to herself. She slapped her forehead and mentally kicked herself. "That's the stupidest thing you've ever done Hermione!" she told herself.

Hermione nearly flew down the Grand Staircase in her hurry to get at least snag a bagel before it was time to go to her first class. She got to the Entrance Hall and spotted Draco with a group of friends. Their eyes met for a second before Hermione went into the Great Hall. She sighed as she walked to the Gryffindor table. She sat down between Harry and Ron.

"You okay?" asked the only girl of the Weasley family, Ginny. She sat on the opposite side of the table from Hermione.

Hermione smiled warmly at her. "I'll be okay. I'll always miss them…but…I'll be all right. I know they wouldn't want me to dwell on them for the rest of my life. They'd want me to be happy." Ron and Harry hugged her.

"That's our girl: smart, brave, loyal," said Harry. Hermione smiled and hugged them back.

* * *

When Draco saw Hermione walk-rather almost at a run-into the Great Hall, he looked up at her. When their eyes met, he looked down and continued talking to his so-called friends. They walked into the Great Hall and sat down on the Slytherin Table. Without really realizing it, he kept on glancing at Hermione on the Gryffindor Table.

"What do you keep on glancing at?" asked Blaise. He turned around and looked around the Great Hall. He turned back to Draco with a raised brow.

"Huh? Oh, nothing." Draco propped his elbow on the table and played with his food. Blaise looked at him curiously, but decided to drop the subject, although he was still worried about his friend. Ever since a couple weeks ago, Draco had been acting weirdly, but Blaise didn't know why. He would find out, sooner or later. He would find out what was bothering him.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the shortness...o.0 It is short isn't it? I did not mean for that to happen, but i didn't really know what to write after this. So i decided to call it chapter and post it. so yeah...so...umm...well, i'm not thanking reviewers on my stories anymore, execpt Paid Date and Harry Potter Idol. So this story and future stories i'll mail you back with the message thingy that the mods have recently added. i like that better. more personal..um is that the right word? well, i just like it better lol. so...**

**Until next time  
This is Kiwi  
Over and out **


	3. Chapter Three

**A/N: Now that Paid Date is over, I have more time to spend on this story. (smiles happily) So, as I was writing this chapter, I suddenly got this wonderful idea that will be told to you later on in the chapter. This chapter is pretty long…well…long to me…I don't know how you guys are going to say. It was 7 pages in my notebook, none of my most recent chapters of any story have been this long, so I am happy. So, enough of my babbling, let's get this party started—err… I should say chapter started huh? Hehehehehe**

* * *

Christmas was in two days and the whole castle was excited. Hagrid had brought in the traditional twelve trees in two days ago and the teachers had decorated them. The ceiling in the Great Hall told everyone that it was snowing a beautiful white coat outside. Everyone was all in the holiday spirit, except for two people: Hermione and Draco, though they showed their friends they were, but being excited on the outside and in the inside were two totally different things.

Hermione walked behind Harry and Ron, who were chatting cheerfully about Quidditch. They were heading to see Hagrid. Hermione wrapped her cloak tighter around herself and put her hands in her pockets. She stared at the sky, not watching where she was going, but since they had gone to Hagrid's place a million time before, she could go there with her eyes closed.

Ron and Harry stopped without warning and Hermione ran into them. "Oof, sorry," Hermione said softly. "Why'd you stop?" she asked and looked up. She didn't need an answer: Draco and his goons stood in front of them. She met Draco's eyes and looked down instantly. He looked away too. Thankfully, Harry or Ron, nor did Draco's gang notice.

"What do you want?" snapped Ron. His fingers tightly wound around his wand that was in his pocket. Crabbe and Goyle did the same, but no one drew them out. No one noticed that Draco and Hermione were acting a little different. Hermione nervously switched her weight from foot to foot and Draco scuffed a foot into the snow.

"Come on guys," Hermione muttered to Harry and Ron. "Ignore them. Let's go." Hermione steered them away from the Slytherin's and the three continued on their way to Hagrid's. Hermione looked over her shoulder to see Draco and his goons walk off.

"One of these days," growled Ron, punching a first into the palm of his other hand. "I'm really going to beat the living daylights out of them!"

"Come on, Christmas is in two days," said Hermione. "Let's try and act civil?" She got in front of them and walked backward. "Christmas is supposed to be full of joy and warmth."

"Not when it's snowing," laughed Harry, making Hermione smile. That made him happy: to see her smiled like she used to before her parents were murdered. _'How is it that she's still smiling? How can she still get out of bed every morning?'_ thought Harry and he inwardly sighed. _'If I had known my parents--or Sirius--as long as she knew her parents…would I be able to go on?…So how…?'_

They knocked on Hagrid's door and a beaming Hagrid opened it and let them inside. "Hot cocoa?" he asked the trio, who nodded. "So, how are you Hermione?" Hagrid set some water to boil on the fire.

Hermione smiled warmly at Hagrid. "I'll be fine. In time, I'll be the same." Hagrid smiled under his unruly beard. "It'll be hard…it'll be tough going home without them there…even so, I'll be fine. They will always be with me, in my heart and in my memory." Hagrid hugged her, cracking her back a few times in the process.

Once the water started to simmer, Hagrid made the cocoa. He passed a mug to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, then sat down in his huge chair. He stared at the three with a glimmer in his eyes. "You've all grown up so quickly. Far too quickly if you ask me. It seems like yesterday that I picked you up from your aunt and uncle, Harry."

"It was only less than seven year ago, Hagrid," said Harry, grinning broadly. "But, you are right. Everything's moving way to fast." He sipped his cocoa, thinking of all that the three have been through together.

What will happen this year? With Voldemort dead, what big adventure will they have to face? Death? They just faced that with Hermione's parents. Filthy death-eaters…they still think they could create Lord Voldemort's world. What if one of them died? What will the other two do? They had all become so close…like brothers and sister…Will they face falling in love? It's bound to happen…but…what will happen when it does? Will they stick with each other forever and for always? Even if two of them hated the person one of them fell in love with? These questions and thoughts flooded the three's minds as they trooped though the snow back to the castle an hour later.

They muttered the password to the Gryffindor Common Room and walked in to find every Gryffindor reading letters or running around frantically. The trio looked around, confused as to why everyone was running around.

"Neville…what's going on?" asked Ron. He looked around. The students were excited, but they looked angry at the same time.

"You haven't read your letters yet, have you?" asked Neville. He held a letter in his hands, as did everyone else. "They're on your beds. They were delivered about an hour or so ago."

Curiously, Ron and Harry went to their dorm as Hermione went to hers. As Neville had said, a letter lay on the middle of the bed. A rather large package lay at the end of the bed. She frowned at it. Was that delivered to her too? Neville didn't mention a package. She picked up the letter and opened it. Her eyes widen by the second.

_Dear Ms. Granger,_

_On December 25th, we'll be holding our first Masquerade Bal. In the package is your gown and mask. Don't worry, the gown and the mask are absolutely beautiful. The staff and I came up with this as a house unity project that we hope will go well._

_As we know that this will not work without a little twist. All the students will be an Angel or a Demon. You, Ms. Granger, are an angel. You'll meet your date in the library near the entrance of the Restricted Section._

_For an extra twist, the mask will change your hair color, your eye color, and your voice. It's up to you if you want to reveal yourself to your date at the end of the night or not._

_As always, there are a few rules you have to follow:_

_1. You cannot tell anyone who you are before the ball, after you change into your gown.  
__2. You can't tell anyone where you are to meet your date. With little investigation, it would be easy to find out who your date is.  
__3. You also can't try on, or even open your gown until the night of the Ball.  
__4. Also, have as much fun as you can muster._

_We wish you the best,  
__Albus Dumbledore &  
__Staff_

Hermione stared at the letter and raced out of the girls' dorm and into Ron and Harry's dorm. They looked up at her shocked. "Can you believe this? House Unity! Do you know what that means?" gaped Ron. "Have the professors lost their minds!"

"It's not like we'll know who our date is Ron. The mask changes everything," said Hermione. She sat down on his bed.

"it doesn't change your personality," said Harry. The three groaned. "it says you can't tell anyone who you are before the ball or it'll be easy to tell who're with…" He frowned, looking at the other two. "How do we dress?"

"I'm sure we'll know at dinner," muttered Hermione. "What are you guys? Angels or Demons?"

"Angel," answered Harry.

"Demon," smiled Ron. "You?"

"Angel," replied Hermione. "Let's try and see if we really know each other." Hermione said with a smile. "Let's see if we can pick each other out at the dance." The boys agreed. "Ah, it looked like we can't tell anyone where we're meeting either…the staff really wants this to be a surprise, huh?" The boys nodded. "We can't try on our gowns until Christmas either…what if I dislike mine?" Hermione sighed and looked at the boys. "I think this will be fun!"

Harry and Ron looked at each other. "Girl thing?" asked Ron. Harry nodded.

"Even with the fall of Voldemort, the Slytherin's think they can still push the other houses around," said Hermione. "I bet they won't once they get to know someone from another house. This'll be our chance to build a bridge over that gap!"

"What if we're perfectly fine with no bridge? Slytherins to their owns and the rest together?" asked Ron. Hermione popped him over the head. "Ow!" He rubbed his head. "Do you actually expect them to be nice?"

"No, actually, I don't, but that doesn't mean you have to sink down to heir level," snapped Hermione. "You might not even find out who your date is anyway."

Feeling another argument brewing between the two, Harry decided to add water to the fire before they got on a 'Non-speaking term' again. "How about we go down to dinner?" said Harry just before it got nasty. "we'll get more information about the dance, I bet." Looking at him, Ron and Hermione nodded.

They walked to the Great Hall, chattering about the dance. They sat down on the Gryffindor Table to find the whole hall talking about the dance. Dumbledore stood, raising his arms into the air, waiting for silence. It came quickly for the whole hall wanted to know what's going to happen on Christmas day.

"Students," began Dumbledore. "I'm glad you are all excited for the upcoming Ball." He looked around at the faces of the students. "I bet you are all wondering how you will get dressed without someone figuring how you are once you put on the mask." Most of the students nodded. "You'll do it individually. I know this sounds like it will take all day, but it will be by house and by gender. It shouldn't take long because all you have to do is put on the gown and the mask. The mask will do everything for you."

"It sounds like a good idea," muttered Hermione when Dumbledore paused. She stopped talking when he continued.

"Once dressed, you'll go straight to the meeting place instructed on your letter," said Dumbledore. "Each dressing room has two doors. Once to enter and one to exit."

"How will we know when they leave so the next person can go in?" asked a Hufflepuff girl.

"When you open the exit door, leave, and close the door, then enter door will open," replied Dumbledore, smiling. "It sounds confusing, but I think all of you will make at least one new friend." Dumbledore grinned as the plates began to fill with food and the hall chattering about the dance.

"I honestly think Dumbledore has really gone off his rocker," muttered Ron, filling his plate full.

Hermione looked over at him. "I think it's brilliant." She told him as she filled her cup with pumpkin juice. "It'd be nice to have house unity."

"She's right," said Ginny. "We'll all be able to get along. I know you guys don't like fighting with the Slytherins everyday." Ginny nodded at Harry and Ron.

"It's not because they are Slytherins," Harry told her. "It's because of who they are." Ginny nodded, not totally believing him.

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Draco stared at Dumbledore in disbelief. This old man was insane! Draco looked around the hall. He did NOT want to be set up with a Hufflepuff…that was for sure. If it had to be, he would rather go with Gryffindor than with a smart-ass Ravenclaw, but even that sounded repulsive. He looked up and down the Slytherin Table. They all didn't look pleased about this, though, some of the girls were excited about dressing up. Draco rolled his eyes.

Draco stood up and walked to the dungeons alone. He managed to give his group the slip. He walked with his hands in his pockets and his head down. Draco got to the entrance of the dungeons and his desire to go down there disappeared. He rested his arms on his knees in a lazy sort of way. He had left the Great Hall early, so he figured he wouldn't be bothered.

Draco looked at the ceiling and closed his eyes. Even since that night down by the lake, he felt down and ashamed of himself. He couldn't bring himself to torment or even look at Granger. No one noticed and for that he was happy. He didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want to deal wit the people to pitied him.

'_What if I get with Granger? It's not like I'd know…but what if I did? What would I do find out? What if I fall for my date and find it was a Hufflepuff…I think I would know if it's a Hufflepuff or not…they truly are annoying. What would I do if I fell for her and I never know who she is?' _thought Draco as he sat against the wall. _'I think that would eat me up inside. To fall for someone I don't even know the true identity of sounds ridiculous, but it can happen I suppose.' _Draco opened his eyes. "I think I'm thinking far to ahead in this whole thing…" he muttered to himself.

He picked himself off the ground as he saw people start to leave the Great Hall. He went into the dungeons, muttered the Slytherin password, and went into his dorm. He sat down on his bed and pulled the curtains closed. He didn't want anyone to see him, nor did he want to see anyone. He played with a loose string on his sheets, thinking some more about the dance.

'_Damn Granger,' _Draco thought to himself, _'look what you have done to me! I can't stand this anymore! Everything I am is turning inside out. Everything I grew up with isn't making any sense anymore. Why! Why the hell do you have this effect of me! I hope it's eating you up inside too! I hope you're suffering just as I am! You're lucky no one's noticed yet!'_ He pulled the curtain away with fury, ripping them off the bed. Draco growled under his breath and muttered, "_Repairo_," at them. He went to his backpack and pulled out McGonagall's essay on human transformation.

Once he was finished with the essay that McGonagall had so kindly assigned over the winter break, Draco pulled on his pjs and climbed into bed.

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**A/N: So…how is it? The last part with Draco wasn't going to be in there. It's not even in my notebook where the story is…but since is both Draco and Hermione, I had to add Draco's third person in here. So, there you go. That was all at the top of my mind….so yeah…umm…I pictured this chapter to be a little longer than it turned out to be. Six pages on word. That's pretty long though, right? I know I've read chapters REALLY long and mine are nothing compared to those.**

**About the angel and demon thing…if anyone was wondering, I'm currently in a role-play on GaiaOnline ©. It's called Angels Vs. Demons. If you have a gaian character, feel free to tell me your username so I can add you on my friend list. Mine's kiwisan2007..but I'm thinking of changing it slightly. If you want to join this rp, tell me, and I'll give you the link to it when I reply to your review. So, I thought that would be cool for the characters to dress up as angels and demons and their dates would be the opposite.**

**I'm also thinking about writing my first AU, alternate universe (Right?), story soon. Maybe after I'm done with this one and Harry Potter Idol…probably before HPI because that one takes a long time because one of my judges have to "be in a happy, laughable" mood, so I am told. But I am not going to tell you what it's about yet hehehehehehe. I already have a summary worked out for it too. Hehehhehhee**

**Well, until I update in the new coming year,  
****This is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out**


	4. Chapter Four

**A/N: So, this chapter came by quickly, didn't it? I believe it's shorter than the last two chapters, but I didn't want to add the Masquerade Ball in this chapter either. Unlike my other Draco/Hermione fictions, this one is going to go by a lot slower. Meaning their relationship won't really bloom to full bloom until later. I want this story to be a little longer than the rest. I hope I can do that. It looks better if it's taken slow, don't you agree? Well, enough of my talking, you all didn't come here to read my A/Ns, but to read this chapter, so here you go. **

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Waking up from his slumber, Draco looked at his watch, bleary-eyed. He wanted to go back to sleep. Eight in the morning was too early to be awake when there were no classes, but his body didn't need anymore sleep. He sighed, rolling over on his back to stare at the ceiling. "Fine…" he muttered to himself and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

Draco got out of the shower, got dressed and went down to the common room. He saw his group in the corner and headed for the entrance of the common room, hoping none of them saw him. Unfortunately, he was caught by Pansy. He groaned silently to himself.

"Hey," Pansy said quietly walking towards him. "Do you want to talk?" She walked in front of him and stopped. That stopped him. He looked at her with emotionless stone gray eyes and shook his head. "But, Draco! You have to talk about it or you'll never get over it!"

His eyes narrowed into a glare. "Talking about it won't make me forget her! And how do you know I haven't talked about it?" Draco folded his arms over his chest. She was starting to piss him off. She just didn't get it. She had no idea what if feels like to lose someone.

"So, we're not goo enough for you, is it?" asked Pansy, jumping into conclusions. She had no idea what she was talking about, nor did she care. If he was going to dump his friends, then she'd make it hurt.

"Oh, nice one Parkinson," snapped Draco. "Has I ever occurred to you that maybe I don't want to talk about anything to anyone? Especially to a fellow Slytherin who doesn't know when to shut the hell up? Has it ever occurred to you that I don't even like being here?" He shook his head and all he heard was silence. No one talked; they wanted to hear what was going on. "All of you, you disgust me. I even disgust myself. So don't think I'll spill me guts to people I can barely stand anymore. To someone who doesn't even notice something was wrong until it was too late!" Draco pushed past people that now had gathered and walked out, fuming. _'Damn her!' _he thought as he went down to breakfast. _'Damn her and her meddling!'_

Draco sat at the end of the Slytherin Table, distancing himself from the few Slytherins already there. He folded his arms on the table and rested his chin on his arm. There weren't many people up yet. Most of the students were still asleep. _'I want to change. I don't want to be like this, but I just can't change overnight,'_ Draco thought, the blinked a couple times. _'I can't change overnight…but I can at least be different tomorrow. No one would ever guess who I am. To really change though, will take a lot longer to do…I'm just glad I won't get up with a Slytherin tomorrow.'_

Draco's stomach growled in hunger. He sat up and began to fill his plate with pancakes and his cup with milk. He buttered up his pancakes and poured some apple cinnamon syrup over them. He was cutting the pancakes when the rest of the Slytherins walked into the Great Hall. Each Slytherin glared at him as they would glare at a muggle-born. Draco ignored them and continued eating. Pansy stopped near him and sighed sadly. He didn't even bother to glance at her. After a moment, she walked away.

* * *

"Harry! Ron! Come on! We're going to miss breakfast!" yelled Hermione, banging on the door to their dorm. 

Harry stumbled to the door, opening it tiredly. He was still in his pajamas. "Go on Hermione." He yawned.

"Oh, don't tell me. You just woke up…I've been up for an hour," Hermione shook her head at Harry's idiotic expression. She smiled. "Okay, I'll see you down in the Great Hall then." Harry nodded and closed the door as she turned around, leaving.

Hermione walked into the Great Hall and looked up at the ceiling. Dark clouds filled every inch and a light snow was falling. Hermione looked down and walked toward the Gryffindor Table, passing the Slytherin Table in the process. She passed Draco, about a foot between them, and she looked over her shoulder at him. Draco looked up and met her eyes. Time seemed to stop and everything around them seemed to vanish.

But, as soon as it happened, it was over. Hermione kept walking toward Ginny, who was calling her over. Draco looked down in his milk, swirling it around some. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. This was really taking a toll on him. Why did she affect him so much? He put his head in his hands and rubbed his eyes.

"Hermione!" Ginny called, waving her hands in the air fanatically. "Come here!"

"What is it, Ginny?" asked Hermione as she sat down next to her red headed friend.

"Have you noticed how strange Malfoy has been acting this past week?" Ginny whispered to Hermione. They both glanced at Draco and back at each other. "Do you find it odd that he's sitting by himself? He's always surrounded by his goons," Ginny paused in thought, "but these past couple days he's been distant."

"Now that you mention it, he has." Hermione looked over her shoulder at Draco again. "But, that's his problem, right? At least he hasn't taunted us all week. I'd rather be ignored then called a 'mud-blood' or something." Hermione turned around and began to eat.

Ginny shrugged. "I guess your right."

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Once he was done with breakfast, Draco got up. He decided just to roam Hogwarts since he had nothing better to do. He put his hands in his coat pockets. His mind wondered and he wasn't attentive to anything around, except for walls and such. Sound was lost to him and so were other people for the moment. No sunlight came through the castle windows. Dark clouds prevented that from happening. The pictures talked among themselves, ignoring Draco. 

"What's the matter, my boy?" one of the pictures decided to talk to him. Draco looked up to see the gaze of an old man. He sat in a comfy looking chair; his hands were folded neatly in his lap.

Draco narrowed his eyes at it. "What makes you think something's the matter?"

"Aren't you always with those friends of yours? Why aren't you today? I've never seen you without them," the old man told Draco.

"Keh," Draco paused. "They are not my friends." He growled at the painting.

"I didn't mean to offend you, sir."

"Do you always pry into peoples' lives?" asked Draco, still glaring at the painting.

The man shrugged. "I don't like seeing the students depressed, is all."

"I'm not depressed. I just…have a lot of my mind that's making me insane…and it's _her_ fault!" growled Draco, getting into a rant. The old man just sat patiently, listening intently. "If _she_ hadn't said…! If _she_ hadn't…!" Draco stopped ranting. His eyes softened from a hard gray to a soft gray. "If _she_ hadn't said…the things…that _I_ wanted to hear the most…If _she_ hadn't…comforted _me_ when _she_ was the one that needed it the most." He punched a bare spot on the stone wall, causing his knuckles to bleed. He wrapped his hand in his cloak, ignoring the pain. He walked away from the wall and turned to face the painting.

The old man looked at Draco. "Finished?" Draco nodded, so the old man spoke again. "This isn't something I can help you out with. Just to give you some advice: follow your heart, your mind. Choose the path that you think is the best; for yourself and for her."

Draco stared at the painting for a moment. "Keh, I have to go get this healed," Draco said as he turned around and headed for the hospital wing. _'He's just a painting. Like he knows what real people go through,' _he thought angrily. _'Like he knows what emotions run through a 17-year-old.'_

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**A/N: Yeah this one is shorter than the rest. But I was at a standstill here. I kinda wanted this chapter to focus mainly around Draco cuz the last chapters focused more on Hermione then they did on Draco. So, yeah that's why it's a little short. But oh well. I've already started chapter Five.**

**Oh and guess what I learned the today (1/3/06)? I can't count! (laughs) I was writing in my notebook, I had just finished this chapter, so I was going to put the next chapter on the next page and I wrote chapter 7. I get on the computer to type this chapter up and it was titled 'SNYSF4' I was like woah…so I went through my notebook and it went Chapter One, Chapter Two, Chapter Three, Chapter Four, Chapter Seven. I was like, AHHH! STUPID! (laughs) well…being blond does that to one who is blond herself. But oh well. I fixed it so its all good. **

**Oh, I seem to be making Draco more emotional than i have read in most fanfictions. I think I like this Draco. I mean, EVERYONE is emotional no matter who they are. So...he's mostly off by himself, thinking to himself, letting no one in...except for that picture of the old man...I'm not sure if the old man will come back yet. Who knows? Maybe he will.**

**Well, until Chapter FIVE gets written and typed and posted  
This Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out**


	5. Chapter Five

**A/N: Okay! So here's I am, giving you the fifth chapter of SNYSF…I'm thinking of changing the title though. I don't like this one anymore. It worked when I planned on having this a one-shot…but now that I have a plot that I didn't have at the time, I need to change the title. What do you guys think? Well, think after you read this chapter k? lol. Have I done a disclaimer on this story yet? I don't think I have, so I will do one now.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER AND CHARACTERS RELATED. EVERYTHING, WITH EXCEPTION OF THE PLOT, BELONGS TO J.K. ROWLING. THANKS…though I do wish I was as talented at writing as she is…**

**There, now that I got that out, here's the 5th chapter of SNYSF thanks for reading **

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"Gryffindors, listen please," hollered Professor McGonagall over her chatting charges. Christmas Day had finally arrived after two days of waiting. The chattering died down quickly enough. "Now, it is your decision what you tell your date and when/ you can make up a name if you wish I think it'd be more fun to do it that way, but do whatever you wish." McGonagall looked around the room. Every student held the package that contained their gown or tux and a mask.

"Ok, girls line up in ABC order by last name, guys do the same. One-by-one, you'll go in and get changed. Be quick about it, we don't have all day," said McGonagall. She waited patiently for the students to get into ABC order. Once that was done, they went into the bathrooms one at a time. Hermione looked over at the boys' line. Harry was somewhere in the middle and Ron was one of the last few people. She was in the middle of the first half of the girls.

Once it was Hermione's turn, she stepped into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. This was the last time she would see herself as she did now for the rest of the night. Remembering that she couldn't dawdle, she opened the package and pulled out a beautiful light purple dress. Hermione gasped at how high the slit went: up to her mid-thigh. She took off her clothes and slipped into the dress. It was a no sleeve turtle neck dress with a diamond cut out above the chest. Her eyes widen some. Never has she worn anything so revealing in her life.

Hermione reached into the package and pulled out a pale gold shawl, four gold loops, a pink glittery mask, and light pink heels. She slipped her hands through the gold loops to find that they were too big, she decided to wear them as anklets instead. She slipped on the shoes and looked into the mirror. All that was missing was the mask and the shawl. Hermione picked up the masked, closed her eyes, and put the mask on. She waited a few moments before opening her eyes. She gasped at her image. She had a light bubble gum pink hair that went a little past her butt, a slightly paler complexion and violet colored eyes. On her back appeared purple tinted angel wings. She wrapped the cloths she was wearing in the package and put it with the rest. She grabbed her shawl and left the bathroom. She had spent a little too long in there. She draped the shawl over her shoulders and wrapped it twice around each arm loosely.

As Hermione walked to the library, there were many angels and demons already about. The angels seemed to radiate beauty. Some of the demons looked a little scary, especially the guys. Others did give off a sense of beauty too. She was awed with the masks' transformations. She couldn't put a name on any of the students.

Speaking of names, what should she call herself? She didn't want to give herself away at the beginning of the night, she liked Dumbledore's idea of secrecy. Besides, house unity wouldn't happen if she told a Slytherin that she was Hermione Granger and she wouldn't have a date to the Ball. No, she wouldn't have that happen…but what name was going to give herself? Not a name someone else in this school might have…maybe a foreign name?

She ventured closer to the library with no name in mind…well, she had a bunch of names running through her mind, but none she liked. She had always enjoyed the Japanese culture…maybe a cute Japanese name? Hermione smiled. A Japanese name would be perfect.

She racked her brain, figuring the meanings of different names. She wanted one that suited her personality a little, but all the names that she could remember the meanings of, she didn't like. She walked into the library and made her way to the back where the Restricted Section was. Her date wasn't there so she still had time to think about a name.

As she sat down, about to think of a name, her mind wandered to the night by the lake. She had kept her thoughts about her feelings and what happened at bay. Her mind didn't think about that night, especially when other people were around. Now that she was alone, her mind wanted to think about it.

'_Why did he have to come out there? He shouldn't have came. He shouldn't have been so nice,'_ she thought as she closed her eyes. _'Maybe that's why he's been acting different…maybe he doesn't like what happened.' _She put her face in her hands. _'I hated you…so why? I know you hate me too…so why did I comfort you. I hate you!'_

"Err…miss?" a hand tapped her shoulder, causing her to jump. She looked up at the person, realizing that he was her date. She stood up quickly. "Are you okay?" asked the man. His short pitch-black hair, a darker shade than Harry's, covered his left eye. He had two gray colored devil horns and small bat looking wings on his back. His tux was black and he had a spiky bracelet that he had pulled up near his shoulder. He had a dull studded belt and his eyes were like two black orbs.

Hermione nodded, "Yes, I'm fine." She blinked. Her voice was a little more high-pitched, but at the same time, it was softer. "I was just thinking, is all." Hermione smiled.

"Oh, it looked like you were about to cry," commented her date. His voice was deep and seductive sounding. She couldn't put a name on him either.

'_He can't be a Slytherin. He's being way too nice for a Slytherin,' _she thought to herself. "Um…instead of calling me miss or something, you can call me Mitsuko." She had just remembered that name. It means 'Child of Light' and thought that kind of suited her.

"Durza," he replied with a bow and kissed her hand, making her blush. The mask covered most of the blush, but not all of it. She also radiated a very, light heat. He smiled. "Something the matter?" Durza asked as he took a step closer to her.

Hermione shook her head. She felt her cheeks slowly turn crimson. "N-No, nothing's wrong." She watched him take another step closer. She would have already took a couple steps back, but the wall was against her back. Durza stood about six inches from her.

"Awkward?" he asked, his expression looked serious with a hint of laughter in his eyes.

"A-A little," answered Hermione.

Durza took a small step closer. "What about now?" Now they stood about two inches from each other, face-to-face, his body slightly grazing hers. Hermione nodded weakly. She never had someone she did not know who they were this close before. It didn't help she was shy either, nor did the sound of his voice. Durza tilted his head and smiled taking a step back. "I'm only messing with your." He laughed. "You're really shy."

Hermione couldn't help but smile. "I've always been shy. I can't help it." She was thankful that the mask hid most of her blush. She was fine with conversing with people, but when people she hardly knew or had a crush on was teasing her like he was, she became extremely shy.

"I don't want you to be shy around me," said Durza. "By the end of the night, I'll be able to stand two inches away from your face and you'll talk to me like I was two feet away, K?" he looked at her purple eyes with his black ones. Hermione looked down. "You'll also be able to hold my gaze."

"You've got yourself a deal," Hermione said with a smile, already getting over her shyness a tiny bit, without realizing it

"Making this interesting, are we?" smiled Durza. It was a little nerve racking to see this student dressed up as an imitating demon smile. His seductive voice didn't help the matter either. "Okay, if I can get you to outgrow this shyness of yours around me, you have to reveal yourself first."

"And if you don't succeed with that, then you have to reveal yourself first," said Hermione. They smiled at each other competitively.

"Deal," they said at the same time and shook hands. "Come on," said Durza, "let's head down to the Great Hall." Hermione nodded.

"Look at all these students!" commented Hermione as they made their way to the Great Hall. "You can't even tell who they are!"

"Yeah, these masks are amazing," Durza told her.

'_I wonder who Durza really is,' _thought Hermione as she walked next to him. _'He's very nice. He couldn't possibly be a Slytherin. He's way too friendly. That's good though…I guess, but I would have thought Dumbledore would pin Gryffindors with Slytherins. Maybe Harry and Ron got a Slytherin? I feel sorry for them if they did.'_ Hermione glanced at Durza. _'I still haven't sorted my feelings and thoughts on Dra-Malfoy. I'm not sure of my feelings or anything towards him. That night…I'm not sure why that happened. Something-just came over us…it probably doesn't mean anything to him anyway. Just something that happened.'_ She looked down at the ground as she walked. "Durza, promise me one thing."

Durza looked at her. "What is it?"

"Promise me you won't fall in love with me."

Durza stared at her for a moment. Don't fall in love with her? He nodded. "Promise." Hermione smiled at him. "Just don't' fall in love with me either and we won't have any problems, but you still will not be shy around me." Hermione nodded. "Do you have a special someone?"

Hermione felt her whole face turn read, visible where the mask didn't cover her face. Durza smiled. "Not really. I'm not sure. I still have to figure a few things out." Durza nodded. "What about you? Do you have someone special?"

Durza shook his head. "No," he answered simply. Hermione nodded in understanding. "It'd be nice to share that with someone, you know? To be able to trust someone so much may sound scary, but I think it's scarier to have no one to trust at all."

Hermione smiled warmly. "That sounds nice. It's the truth though. I want to find the reason I'm living in someone else. I think that'd be wonderful." Durza nodded. "Wow, you're the only person I can talk to about this."

Durza smiled warmly too. "Same for me."

They walked into the Great Hall, gasping. It looked a lot like how it was during the Yule Ball during the Tri-Wizard Tournament three years ago. The only difference was that it was only Hogwarts students and they were all dressed up as angels and demons.

The twelve traditional trees had great care taken into them. They were decorated beautifully. Ice statues of angels and demons were spread about the food tables and there were smaller ones on each of the little round tables. They ceiling showed dark clouds and a snowfall, but that just added to the beauty of the room. Music wasn't playing yet because not everyone had gotten dressed and into the Great Hall. Students sat with their dates at the tables and chatted quietly. Durza grabbed Hermione's hand, and led her to a table. The tables seemed to have a small layer of snow on them, but when you tired to sweep it away with your hand, you'd find it transparent.

"What would happen if I did end up falling for you on accident?" Durza asked her after a few minutes of silence between the two. It was one of those uncomfortable silences that had made them fidgety.

Hermione stared at him and looked down. "I don't think I'd be able to accept your feelings. I wouldn't mean any harm to it."

"What would you do?"

"I think I would stare at you as if you were crazy, the probably run off and you'd never find out who I am," said Hermione. She looked down at her lap as she said this at the top of her mind. "Why do you want to know?"

"I was just wondering, is all," said Durza, his black eyes staring at her intently.

A few minutes passed between the silent two when Dumbledore stood up in front of the hall. The noise stopped and al heads turned to face the old man. "I hope everyone is having a wonderful time so far," Dumbledore looked around the room, his eyes twinkling. "Now, it's your choice when and where you reveal yourselves, but not too soon. I want you to become friends with your date first. I'm not saying that after you take off your masks, you'll still be friends because they might be someone you already disliked in the past. Although, now that no one knows who anyone is, you'll be able to talk to your peers in a new perspective." He paused and looked around again. "Okay, enough of my chitter-chatter, let's let this Masquerade Ball begin!"

As soon as he said that, music started to play. Students and their dates started talking about the Masquerade Ball and what Dumbledore had said. Slowly, students started to pull, drag, or simply walk with their dates onto the dance area. Everyone was in step with each other while they danced the beautiful dance they learned three years ago.

Durza got up from his chair and walked around the table. Hermione watched him intently, wondering what he was going to do. Smiling, Durza bowed in front of her and held out his hand. Hermione's eyes flickered from his face to his hand, waiting for him to say something.

"Mitsuko, would you care to dance?" Durza asked her, his fingers twitching for her to slid her hand into his. He watched as her face slowly turned a healthy pink.

Hermione smiled and slid her hands into his. He was warm to the touch. He slowly led her to the dance floor. He placed the hand he was holding around his neck. His arms snaked around her waist, holding her close, but she protested.

"I-I'm sorry. Too close. Too soon," muttered Hermione so no one else except Durza could hear.

"I'm sorry, no need to apologize. It's my fault," said Durza. He gently pushed her away from him some. Hermione stared at the ground, ashamed. Durza's fingers slid under her chin, forcing her to look at him. "Stop it. Don't blame yourself. I appreciate your morals. It's okay. I promise."

Hermione nodded. "Okay. Thank you."

"No problem," smiled Durza. He started to lead the dance and lifted her into the air at the same time everyone else lifted the girls.

Once the girls touched the ground, they spun two feet away from the guys. Once they stopped spinning, their right leg toe-touched the ground in front of them. Hermione's dress fell to the sides of her leg, revealing most of her leg. She gulped, but didn't do anything. She guessed this part of the dance was to tease the guys. The guys smirked at the girls. Most of them were admiring the girls' legs, even if half the dresses didn't show as much as Hermione's, if they did at all, but Durza's eyes were locked with Hermione's eyes. For that, she was thankful. The girls stared at the guys, waiting for them to do something.

All at the same time, the guys stalked to the girls, fingers brushing along the girls' legs, even if they were covered with a dress. All except Durza, who had hovered his fingers over Hermione's bare leg. His black eyes never leaving her purple ones the whole time. The guys wrapped around the girls' waists, pulling them close. Once again, Durza respected Hermione's shyness and innocents. He didn't pull her too close.

"You now, you don't have to do this," muttered Hermione in his ear. "Don't hold back because of me."

"I'm not doing it just because you're shy," Durza said in a teasing voice. Hermione stared at him. "I'm not like the other guys here." He said as he looked around the hall at the guys who were holding the girls very closely. "You already said no to being close. I didn't forget that, you know."

Hermione smiled. "You're not like any guy I've met before. You're charming, sweet, caring…"

"You're not falling in love with me, are you? You'd be breaking a promise and that's bad luck," teased Durza. He raised a brow. They spun around, making Hermione's dress raise some.

"No, but I would like to be friends after tonight," said Hermione. "You're great to talk to and you understand girls' feelings like no one else I know."

Durza smiled, tilting his head to the side. "Sure. You're fun to talk to too." He spun Hermione away from him, still holding her hand. He spun her back into his arms and dipped her as the song ended. They stared at each other's eyes for a moment before he brought her to her feet again.

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**A/N: Wow! This has to be one of my longest chapters now.It had been a LOT longer. But I decided to cut it short here because I didn't want the whole ball in one chapter. So, I cut it and now I've gotten through like two pages on word on chapter six, so it should be here in no time at all. **

**The name Durza is actually the name of the Prince in my RP forum I talked about in chapter four of this story I believe…or maybe last chapter of Paid Date? I don't know, one of the two though. Mitsuko was my Japanese name out-come on an online quiz on my Myspace© (**** add me if you have a myspace too!)**

**So, what title should this story have? I was thinking Masquerade Ball (hey, thats my formal theme for this year...and i am not going...((cries)) what do you guys thing?**

**Well…that is all I have to say for now. Stay tuned for the 6th chapter of this story!  
This is Kiwi-san  
Over and Out**


	6. Chapter Six

**A/N: So yeah…some of this chapter started out to be chapter five, but then I decided to cut chapter five short and start chapter six. I was sitting on my bed one night, writing this when an idea popped into my head. I'll tell you what it is after the chapter because it is this chapter. I don't know why I wrote that, but I did, and I liked it, so it stays. Well…not much to say here other than, have fun reading hehehehe**

**Oh, I was rereading chapter five a couple days ago and I realized that my myspace link didn't come up...heh…my bad…well, the link is my homepage, so just go to my profile and click my homepage if you have a myspace too**

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The next song had a faster beat to it then the first song. Durza grinned with mischief. Fred and George, Ron's older brothers, always had the grin plastered onto their faces. Hermione knew it all too well. It made her nervous and a little frightened.

"What are you planning?" asked Hermione.

"Spin with me," he whispered into her ear, making it as sexual as he could. He found enjoyment in teases her and watching her blush, which she did now.

"What?" asked Hermione. It sounded more sexual than it really was.

Durza chuckled and grabbed her hand. He wrapped his other arm around her waist, pulling her towards him some, but not as close as he did when she had protested against it. She stared at him, then a small smile appeared on her face. They started spinning, slowly at first, then gradually got faster and faster.

"You let go of me and you will suffer the consequences," Hermione told them as they spun around.

Durza smiled. "Threatening me now?"

"Yes, I am," teased Hermione.

"I won't let go. Ever."

Near the end of the song, Durza and Hermione fell to the ground. Hermione made sure to land so no one could see in her dress. She closed her eyes as everything was still spinning. Once they could keep their balance, they stood up and went to go get some water.

Hermione filled her cup and faced the hall. Her eyes scanned the angels and demons, trying to see if she could find Harry and Ron. She failed at that. It was impossible to find your friends unless you knew what they looked like. Hermione had no idea. _'Oh well,'_ she thought to herself. _'I have Durza here to talk to. I fell like I can talk to him about serious stuff that I can't talk about with Harry and Ron.'_ Hermione glanced at Durza. _'I'm glad I didn't get a Slytherin. This night wouldn't have been so fun.'_ Hermione threw her paper cup in the trash.

"I'll be right back," Durza muttered in her ear. Hermione nodded and he walked off towards the bathrooms. She leaned against the wall, closing her and waited for Durza to return.

She felt someone's body push up against hers rather forcefully. She opened her eyes and gasped. She tried to push the man off, but he was much too strong for her. His hot breath was on her neck. She was too frightened to make any noise. The man licked her neck and tears started to fall from her eyes. His hand rubbed her leg and slowly made its way up her side and over her breasts. Hermione's knees weakened, so the man wrapped an arm around her waist, forcefully pulled her as close as was possible.

Out of nowhere, just as the man lifted his head to kiss her, a fist made contact with his cheek. The man stumbled, letting go of Hermione in the process. She fell to her knees, crying in fear. "Don't you _ever_ touch her again, you dirty bastard!" growled Durza. His voice was deadly and threatening. It made the whole hall turn to stare.

The man wiped the blood from his lip. "You'll pay for that," he growled. He charged at Durza, fist raised. Durza easily dodged it and the man ran into a professor who had seen it all. The professor took the student away, yelling at him. Durza glared at him before turned to Hermione. He walked over to her and kneeled down next to her. He barely touched her should with his fingertips when she jumped, smacking his hand away. Durza stared at her, not offended by what she did. Hermione looked up with teary eyes.

"I-I'm sorry," cried Hermione. She wrapped her arms around herself. After a few seconds, she flung herself at Durza, crying into his chest. His arms encircled her in a hug. "I-I was so scared. I really thought he was going to…"

Durza moved so he sat with his legs crossed. "I know, but he's gone now. And I'm here. I'll protect you." Hermione nodded into his chest. Her whole body shook from fear and shock. They didn't move for a while. The people slowly went back to the dance, the music playing loudly again.

Dumbledore worked his way through the students until he came to Durza and Hermione. "Are you all right?" he asked, concern filled his voice.

Hermione looked up from Durza's chest and nodded. "Yes, I'll be fine," she replied, her voice still a little shaken. "Who was it? The student?"

"Blaise Zabini," replied Dumbledore. He kneeled next to them. "No need to worry. He's being expelled and will be tried for sexual harassment." He looked at Durza. "You'll stay with her?" Durza nodded. Dumbledore got up and left them, heading for his office.

Durza moved them so he could lean against the stone wall. Hermione stopped crying, but she still shook uncontrollably. Durza stroked her hair, muttering words that would help her calm down. It took a while, but she calmed down. He shakes had stopped and her breathing returned to normal.

Hermione finally pulled away from him, slowly. "Thank you for what you did," she said softly.

"No problem," smiled Durza. He picked himself off the ground and held out his hand. "Up for dancing?"

Hermione took his hand and he pulled her up with ease. "Sure. I won't let what happened spoil the night."

The got to the dance floor just as a new song started. It was an American hip-hop song that had a slow and steady beat to it. For those who listened to American hip-hop would know that the song was called "Stickwitu" by the PussyCat Dolls. The guys danced behind the girls, moving with the music.

"We don't have to dance to this song if you don't want to," said Durza as he looked around the room and the closely dancing students.

"I thought you wanted to break my shyness?" asked Hermione, then she smiled. "Or, do you want to lose the bet?"

"What happened to the guy your not sure of?" replied Durza with a question of his own.

"It'd be a one-sided thing anyway."

"It sounds to me like you want to lose this bet."

"No, just my shyness," replied Hermione with a smile.

"It seems to me like you're getting over it already," smiled Durza. "You want to dance to this song, then we dance." Durza chuckled and moved behind her, placing his hands on her stomach. They swayed with the beat of the song. They both closed their eyes, letting the song take a hold of them. Hermione placed her hands on his. She could feel his warm breath trickle down her neck, but it didn't bother her like Blaise's did. She felt that absolutely nothing could harm her when she was in Durza's arms.

Nobody gonna love me better 

_I must stickwithu forever.  
__Nobody gonna take me high  
__I must stickwitu.  
__You know how to appreciate me  
__I must stickwitu, my baby.  
__Nobody ever made me feel this way_  
_I must stickwitu._

The sound ended and another slow song started. Hermione turned around and stared at Durza. He stared back and wrapped his arms around her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on his chest and closed her eyes. He rested his head on hers and closed his eyes too. Once again, they let the music take them.

_When I first saw you I already knew_  
_There was something inside of you  
__Something I thought that I would never find  
__Angel of mine_

_I look at you, lookin' at me  
__Now I know why they say the best things are free  
__I'm gonna love you boy you are so fine  
__Angel of mine_

_How you changed my world you'll never know  
__I'm different now, you helped me grow  
__You came into my life sent from above  
__When I lost all hope you showed me love  
__I'm checkin' for ya boy you're right on time  
__Angel of mine_

_Nothing means more to me than what we share  
__No one in this world can ever compare  
__Last night the way you moved is still on my mind  
__Angel of mine_

_What you mean to me you'll never know_  
_Deep inside I need to show  
__You came into my life sent from above (Sent from above)  
__When I lost all hope, you showed me love (Boy you showed me love)  
__I'm checkin' for ya, boy you're right on time (Right on Time)  
__Angel of mine (Angel of mine)_

_I never knew I could feel each moment  
__As if it were new,  
__Every breath that I take, the love that we make  
__I only share it with you (you, you, you, you)  
__When I first saw you I already knew  
__There was something inside of you  
__Something I thought that I would never find  
__Angel of mine_

Durza and Hermione swayed slowly to the music. Durza's black eyes had gone soft as he looked at the angel in his arms. He closed his eyes and rested his head against hers again.

Hermione opened her eyes, they flickered in thought. _'This is right? I don't even know who this person is. It shouldn't feel right. I shouldn't be doing this, but I can't help that my heart is in tune with his. I can't help these feelings…I told to promise not to fall in love with me…he did and told me the same…but I think…I might be slowly breaking that promise…' _Hermione closed her eyes. _'He doesn't have to know these feelings. What he doesn't know can't hurt him right?'_

_You came into my life sent from above (Came into my life, yeah yeah yeah)  
__When I lost all hope you should me love (Boy you showed me love, uh huh)  
__I'm checkin for ya, boy you're right on time (But boy you're right on time)  
__Angel of mine (Angel of mine, oh mine)_

_How you changed my world you'll never know  
__I'm different now, you helped me grow_

_I look at you lookin' at me  
__Now I know why they say the best things are free  
__I'm checkin' for ya, boy you're right on time  
__Angel of mine_

As the song ended, Durza grabbed Hermione's shoulder and pushed her back some so he could look into her eyes. Hermione looked at him and frowned. His eyes showed her something she wished wasn't there. His eyes showed her love, care, and a hint of sadness. "I…I'm sorry," said Durza, "but…I broke your promise." He looked down.

Hermione took a step back. "Y-You promised," she whispered. "You promised that this wouldn't happen." Her shoulders dropped and she looked away. "You don't even know who I am." She ignored her feelings toward him.

"I know I promised," whispered Durza. "I don't even know when I started to feel like this." He looked up at her. "I can't help how I feel Mitsuko." Durza closed his eyes, emotionally getting ready for her rejection.

Hermione stared at him for a moment. Her hand slowly made its way to his mask. Durza felt her fingers touch his face, then felt her thumb underneath his mask. He kept his eyes closed.

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**A/N: MEGA CLIFFY! (laughs evilly) okay…you guys are really going to hate me now. (sweat drop) I was going to have this chapter longer than this…but when I got to this point in my notebook, an evil thought entered my head. I never really had a MEGA CLIFFY before, so I thought, this is the greatest MEGA CLIFFY I have ever wrote. So I decided to take this MEGA CLIFFY and end the chapter. And what's bad is that I don't even know who Durza is going to be yet. Heh…that's a little bad, isn't it? This MEGA CLIFFY did make the chapter shorter than I was going to have it at the beginning, but I just couldn't resist. Gomen (sorry in Japanese)**

**Well…I don't have anything else to say…(thinks) oh! I'm still thinking of changing the name to something else. I have one name in mind: Masquerade Ball: The Night That Changed Everything…but I'm not so crazy about that name…well, I do think it fits…but I'm not sure…what do you guys think?**

**Guys...I think I have a problem...heh (sweat drop) I think my obsession with Harry Potter and music are rubbing together. I was looking through my stories the other day and just about all of them (save the one-shots, except one) have a song in them...this is bad that I love music this much? I mean, I can't write, read, sleep, and get up or anything without listening to music, unless I'm watching TV...heh...**

**Oh, before I had made up the costumes for Durza and Hermione, I was looking for pictures first. I found two that I liked, and used them for what they looked like once they put on their masks and gowns/tux. The link is on my profile if anyone wants a better view on what Hermione and Durza look like. I just remembered that I had this hehe**

**Well that's all for now so  
****Until Next Time  
****This is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out**


	7. Chapter Seven

**A/N: I AM SOOO SORRY FOR THE MEGA CLIFFY ON CHAPTER SIX! Please forgive me. I just had to, so to make it up, I finished chapter seven as soon as I could...it turns out it wasn't so soon huh?I am so sorry. But cliffs like that don't come often for me. So I apologize. I know you are all dying to read this chapter, so enough of me talking, here's the seventh chapter. Hope you all like it. (Smiles)**

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"Before you know who I am, please, tell me whenever I need to talk to someone, I can always turn to you," muttered Durza. He kept his eyes closed. He could feel her tremble, then he felt the mask slip off. After a moment, he heard the mask clatter to the ground.

Hermione took a step back and another, before she turned around and started to run. Durza opened his eyes just in time to see her take off and ran to catch up. He was catching up quickly. "Damn shoes," she muttered.

"She is not getting away that easily," muttered Durza. He chased her far from the dance; the hallways were empty. Everyone, including Filch and Mrs. Norris, were at the dance. Durza basically tackled Hermione to the ground, but that the last second, just as they were about to hit ground, he had turned so he would land on the tiled floor and she would be unharmed.

"What the…hell! Are you…stupid!" panted Hermione. They both were panting from the game of cat and mouse. Hermione struggled to get up, but he held her wrists tightly.

"You told me…you'd run," panted Durza in a whisper. He stared at her. "I'm not going to accept that, Mitsuko."

"You don't even know who I really am. I could be anyone. If I were Pansy Parkinson, would you still say you love me? Or Ginny Weasley? Or Hermione Granger? Or Luna Lovegood? Would you still be able to look me in the eyes and say 'I love you'?" hissed Hermione. She didn't really know why she was totally pissed off, except for the fact he had tackled her to the ground.

The guy who she currently sat on stared at her, lost for words. His grip on Hermione's wrists loosened. She took this opportunity to get up and start to walk away, but his voice stopped her. "What about you? You have feelings for me too. I could see it in your eyes."

Hermione turned around. "You're right, but you are also wrong!" She saw the confused look in his eyes. "I fell in love with Durza, not Draco Malfoy! I hated you! You shouldn't have come down to the lake that night!" All this built up emotion just came out at once and she couldn't stop it. "I hated you! And I know you hated me too! So why! Why did you go down to the lake that night?" Tears that had wanted to fall, started to fall. Her fists were clenched and she didn't look at him.

Draco stared at her. "Hermione?" Hermione took off the mask and brown hair replaced the pink and chocolate colored eyes replaced the purple. Her skin darkened some. She stared at the blonde haired boy. Draco closed his eyes. "That night, by the lake, I don't know why I did what I did."

"That's not good enough!" cried Hermione. "You have to have had a reason why you came. I would be so much better off if you didn't. Everyday I want to think about you! I finally ask 'why did he do that?' and all I get is a pathetic 'I don't know.'"

"You think you're the only one that's affected!" growled Draco, starting to get angry with her. "Do you think that I haven't been sitting by myself since, thinking about it? I've thought about it Hermione and I hoped-I wished-you were going through hell like I was! It's _you_ that keeps popping in my head when I'm not thinking about anything! When I think about you, I want to change for the better!" His fists clenched and his eyes were tightly closed as he yelled at her. His face was flushed with anger "Because of that night, all I see when I look in the mirror is my father! The man who killed my mother and your parents is all I see anymore!" He calmed down some and fell to the floor. Hermione's knees gave out a few moments after and fell to the floor too. "So why?" He muttered loud enough for her to hear. Hermione looked up at him. "Why did you say the things that I needed to hear the most? Why did comfort me when it was plain to see that you needed it the most?"

Hermione closed her eyes and looked down. She couldn't tell that she didn't know why, especially after she had just yelled at him for giving her the same answer. Instead, she just dropped the questions that she herself couldn't answer. She took her shoes off and slowly got up. She turned around and started to walk away without a word. This was too much for her, emotionally. She needed to be by herself. She didn't head for the Gryffindor Common Room; instead she went to the Room of Requirement, making it so that no one could bother her.

Draco got up from the ground and walked to the dungeons. Now that they each knew about each other's mixed feelings, what now? _'I don't think I'm emotionally ready. She looked so hurt, but she sounded so angry.'_ Draco thought to himself. He grimaced and grabbed his shoulder. That was the first thing he landed on when he tackled Hermione to the ground. _'Tackling wasn't very smart. That's most likely one of the reasons she was angry.' _He held his shoulder and headed for the hospital wing, then remembered everyone was having fun at the dance.

"I probably just bruised it," muttered Draco to himself. He continued his way to his common room. It was still early, so he would have time by himself; time that he really needed.

Once he got to his dorm room, he changed out of his tuxedo and into some pajamas. He got into bed and stared at the ceiling. Feelings and thoughts swam in his mind; thought he wouldn't have thought about last year. _'These feelings…I shouldn't have for her. I might only hurt her in the end.' _This thought made him feel really downhearted. Could he easily ignore these feelings? Could he really push them to the back of his mind, just to see her safe? Will she be okay with that? His thoughts were interrupted by a girl's giggle. Draco looked over at his housemate and his date. He groaned. That boy was always bringing girls into their dorm. Draco got up, pulling on his bed robes and left the common room.

He slowly made his way to the Room of Requirement. There he could at least get some sleep without the sounds of his roommate and the girl. He walked around the room three times and went to open the door that had appeared. He wrapped his fingers around the handle and was going to open it, but someone from the inside seemed to be in a hurry, and pushed it open rather forcefully.

"Shit," Draco cursed. His wrist had bent the wrong way. He let go of the door and held his wrist, still cursing.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" cried the girl who had opened the door. Draco looked up from his wrist to glare, but he didn't. Hermione was standing in front of the door, still in her dress. "Malfoy? What are you doing?"

"I have a first name you know," muttered Draco, but habits were hard to break. "Why the hell did you bombard your way out of that room?" he wasn't angry with her. The pain in his wrist throbbed, making what he said meaner than he wanted. Seeing as she wasn't going to answer his question until he answered hers, he sighed and told her why he was not in his dorm.

"Well, you need this room more than me," said Hermione as she moved out of the way of the door. Draco, about to protest, was interrupted. "Really, I was just leaving." Hermione looked down at her dress. "Besides, I'm still dressed up, I need to change." Draco nodded and she left. He walked into the room and shut the door.

He made the room basically like the Slytherin dorm with only one bed. He got into it, pulling the covers up to his chest. _'I can't change over night…I might not even be able to completely change for a long time, but I will…little by little…I can make myself the kind of person who can hold his head up high and tell the world, "I love you!"' _Draco rolled over and brought his knees to his chest. Just as his mind cleared, an image of the night by the lake came to mind.

… _Hermione smiled and moved closer to him. Draco pale cheeks turned a light pink that was very visible. Hermione leaned on his shoulder, a light pink tint to her cheeks too. She intertwined her fingers with his and closed her eyes._

_Draco took a deep breath to calm his nerves and closed his eyes, leaning his head on hers. …_

Draco's shoulders twitched. Could he really be the guy who isn't afraid of getting close? Was it possible for him to become the kind of person she fell in love with at the dance? Will it be hard? For him to become like he was tonight?

Draco's eyes grew wide. _'What if the guy she said she had mixed feelings for was me? It's a possibility.' _Suddenly, his face screwed up in disgust. _'There's also the possibility that I could be Weasley or Potter. Ugh, I hope not.' _Draco sighed. _'My life…the way I was brought up…if it wasn't for you…I wouldn't be questioning them! I hate you so much…but…if you hadn't…then I would be just like my father when I'm. So, my love for you overrides my hate…' _Draco closed his eyes, trying to calm down before he broke down.

Draco opened his eyes to a bright light that burned his eyes because they hadn't adjusted yet. He rolled over, rubbing his eyes. "How the hell does sunlight get into the Slytherin Common Room?" he muttered and opened his eyes, looking around. "Oh yeah, I left there last night." He got up, stretching for a moment and opened them. His Slytherin uniform appeared next to him. He got dressed and went down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

As he expected as he walked into the Great Hall, it was back to normal. The four house tables were back in place, as well as the staff table. He sat down at the Slytherin Table, distancing himself from the other Slytherins. Then, he heard the all too familiar voices of the 'Golden Trio'. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He promised himself last night that he would push his feelings to the back of his mind. If they were just going to hurt her in the future, he wouldn't have them. His whole idea of change was just a fantasy. He couldn't make it a reality.

"Oh, look," sneered Draco, returning to who he used to be. "It's the 'Golden Trio'. Potty, Weasel, and the Bookworm." Draco smirked at the each stopped.

Hermione's eye twitched. Harry and Ron took a step away from her, amused. They smirked at Draco as Hermione turned around. She slammed her books on the table, causing the whole hall to turn at the loud sound. McGonagall and Snape made a move to get up, but Dumbledore shook his head at him. "I've just about had enough of you Malfoy!" hissed Hermione. Draco stared at her. This wasn't what he had expected. He expected her to run out of the Great Hall crying. Instead, she picked up his bowl of porridge, her eyes seemed to blaze with anger, and turned it over on his head.

Draco stood up, a look of shock and disgust upon his face. He whipped the porridge out of his eyes and glared daggers at Hermione. The whole halls seemed to hold their breaths. He didn't know that Hermione made the same promise: to push her feelings away. _Click. Flash. Click. Flash. Click. Flash. Click. Flash. _Draco turned his attention to the clicking and flashing. Colin Creevey, the 6th year Gryffindor who loved his camera to death, was taking pictures of the whole incident. Draco growled at him and the boy ran. He glared back at Hermione. Every good feeling he though about her disappeared and locked itself in the back of his mind.

Hermione glared back at him. Everything that had happened between them vanished. It meant nothing to either one of them, not right now. Ron and Harry glanced at each other then to Hermione then to Draco. Their battle auras seemed to grind at each other, trying to force the other back. Harry grabbed Hermione's shoulders and steered her away from Draco while Ron grabbed her books, almost falling over with the weight.

"Argh! He pisses me off!" growled Hermione once they got to the Gryffindor Table. She sat down and Ron and Harry sat on either side of her. Ron looked over his shoulder to see Draco glaring at them and then leave the Great Hall.

"Still, it looked like you two were about to kill each other," Ginny told her, then she grinned. "Oh! I can't wait until Colin gets those pictures develop! They will be great!" The whole table laughed. Hermione stopped laughing and looked over her shoulder, a thoughtful gaze in her eyes.

"Hermione?" Harry's voice drifted to her ears. She turned to look at him. "I thought we lost you." Hermione giggled, shaking her head.

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Draco was fuming as he marched to the Slytherin bathrooms. _'How dare she!'_ thought Draco. "That wasn't supposed to happen!" he muttered. He locked the bathroom door and walked past the huge tub and sat down on a bench. He took off his shoes and socks, then stripped down, throwing his clothes in the corner. He got into one of the shower stales and messed with the hot and cold taps until he got it the way he wanted. He let the water pour down, washing most of his breakfast out of his hair. He washed up, making sure every bit of porridge was off of him. 

He got out, dried off, and wrapped the towel around his waist. He sighed and leaned against the wall. Pushing his feelings aside was one thing, but returning to the way he used to be was another. He realized there was nothing he could do to the fact that he was going to grow up like his father. He went back to his dorm and got dressed.

He walked back to the Great Hall. Since Winter Break wasn't over, most of the students still sat with their friends. Hermione was one of those students. He grabbed someone's abandoned bowl of porridge and walked over to the group of Gryffindors. By the time anyone noticed he had a bowl in his hand, it was already on Hermione's head like a hat. Porridge dripped from her face and hair. Harry and Ron moved away from her without getting any on them. Hermione glared at Draco, who glared back, daring one of them to do something, but neither did.

"Snape, McGonagall, please retrieve you're students and send them to my office," muttered Dumbledore. "Let Miss Granger take a shower first." Snape and McGonagall nodded. They got up and told their students that Dumbledore wanted to speak with them privately. Hermione went to the Gryffindor girls' bathroom and took a shower. Draco followed Snape and McGonagall to Dumbledore's office. Dumbledore shooed Snape and McGonagall out of his office as Draco walked around, inspecting the many shiny objects Dumbledore had.

Hermione walked into the office just as Draco felt like he looked at every object that was in sight for the tenth time. Two chairs appeared in front of the desk and Dumbledore motioned for them to sit. They sat, waiting for Dumbledore to say something. He studied them for a moment-a long moment it seemed before getting up and walking toward a cupboard. He picked up a bowl and brought it to his desk, setting it down gently. "I want to show you two something. Come here," Dumbledore said as his hand motioned them.

"That's a Pensieve!" muttered Hermione as she walked around the desk. She looked at Dumbledore, confused. "Why do you want us? _We_ couldn't be of any use."

Dumbledore smiled. "For this, I need both of you. I know, I shouldn't interfere with the affairs of my students-" Hermione and Draco glanced at each other. "-but, I think I need to. Also, before I show you what I want to, don't get angry. It was pure accident." He looked at them. "Hermione, if you be a dear and go first?" Hermione nodded and plunged her head into the bowl and landed on snow outside Hogwarts. Draco and Dumbledore came soon after her feet hit the ground.

"Where-? Oh," Draco's eyes grew wide as he followed Dumbledore, who was following another, transparent, Dumbledore. Draco was confused for a moment before he remembered was a Pensieve was.

"You were here?" asked Hermione softly. She immediately turned red. Draco turned his head, smiling. She didn't know someone had been watching.

"I was taking a walk, enjoying the December weather," replied Dumbledore. They stood in front of the past Hermione who was on the ground. "I want you two to really look at yourselves. Sit right next to them if you have to. The protection spell won't harm you, so don't worry."

"_I am not in the mood Malfoy," Hermione said a few minutes after Draco sat down next to her protection spell. "Go away."_

"_I know how you feel," said Draco, ignoring Hermione's command._

"_How can you possibly know how I feel?" snapped Hermione. "You have no idea!"_

"_How do you know that?" Draco asked calmly. He looked at her glaring brown eyes with his silver calm eyes. "My mother was murdered." He sighed. "She was murdered by a death-eater…my father…" Draco closed his eyes, refusing the tears that wanted to fall so badly._

_Hermione stared at him. "I…I'm sorry…I didn't know…" she muttered. She let her shield fall and made a new one to include Draco. "My parents were…murdered by two death-eaters…Lucius Malfoy…and Bellatrix Lestrange." She wasn't looking at anymore; instead, she fell back onto the grass and stared at the sky._

The conversation went on and the present Draco and Hermione were right next to the past ones. They studied each other. Both of their past selves were more relaxed with each other than they were now. Hermione watched as her past self moved next to the past Draco. She glanced at the present Draco. He had teased her about the shyness when he had sat here, pink. Hermione closed her eyes. If only they could be this content, always, but they couldn't. they were born to hate each other. That was already proven. A warm hand grabbed hers; the same warmth she felt at the dance. She opened her eyes and looked down at her hand, then up at Draco's eyes. Her own was full of sadness. She looked away and pulled her hand out of his.

Smiling warmly, Dumbledore placed a hand on their shoulders and were pulled back to the present, back to Dumbledore's office. "You may leave, that is all I wanted to show you." The teens nodded and headed for the door, but Dumbledore's voice stopped them. "Remember, friendships blossom in the most unusual places." They stared at him for a second before leaving.

"Hermione! Wait!" yelled Draco. Hermione started to run the very moment the stone Griffin let them out of the stairway. She ignored his requests.

'_Don't,'_ she thought. _'Don't say it. I don't care, tell me a lie, just don't say it.' _Tears started to fall from her eyes. _'I hate you! I always have! One or two nights can't change that!'_

"Do not make me tackle you or jinx you!" yelled Draco. He reached for his wand and watched her do the same. "Don't run! Stop running!"

"Leave me alone Malfoy!" cried Hermione. She turned the corner and disappeared through a hidden passage under a picture. She ran down the narrow hallway and stopped to see if he was following, but he wasn't. She slid down the wall and cried. _'I hate this! I hate you! I wish Dumbledore hadn't brought us back to that night! I finally set aside my feelings…now…now I have to fight them back again without anyone getting worried!'_

Draco walked to the Slytherin Common Room, slightly angry and more depressed. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, his shoulders sagged, and his eyes downcast. _'This never even crossed my mind. I never dreamed that I'd have these feelings for you, of all people. And the strangest thing…the weirdest this is that I don't wish to stop having these feelings. Even when you run, I'll keep chasing, because I'm a stubborn bastard.' _He chuckled and his anger disappeared and replace with happiness.

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**A/N: So? How did you all like it? I love this. I think it's my 2nd favorite chapter (first being the 6th chapter.) I also changed the name and summary. Go read the summary if you haven't noticed that it changed! Hehehehe…umm…I also made a new rule when I type my stories: No chapter shall be 5 pages on word or less, unless it's a short one-shot. If it does turn out to be less than 5 pages, I have to make it longer. This chapter is 8 pages, so I'm okay with this one. But before they went into the Pensieve, it was only 4 and a half, so I had to add some more, then this popped into my head…umm…well, I have nothing else to say…**

**So, this is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out!**


	8. Chapter Eight

**A/N: So…this story is really coming along wonderful, isn't it? I think so. I never got so many reviews for one chapter before. It's exciting. I hope my writings can get as good as those writers who get 200+ on their stories. That would be great, but I am no where near experience in a writer. A year ago, I started my own story with my own characters and all that, but it crashed and burned. It was mostly dialog and not even detail at all. Its in my drawer...somewhere. Lol. Well, enough of my chatting (I say that a lot) lets get to the 8th chapter of Masquerade Ball: A New Beginning…that's the title right? I had two titles in mind…I can't remember what one I used……((sweatdrop))**

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_'Why are you different from all the other girls? Why do I harbor these feelings for you that I've never felt before?'_

Winter break finally ended and the classes started. Since the Pensieve, Hermione and Draco hadn't so much as glanced at each other. When they were along in the same hallway, she'd always disappear into a hidden passage after a short game of cat and mouse.

Draco sighed and sat down in Transfiguration class. He looked around and noticed most of the students had mingled with students from other houses. The 'Golden Trio' sat together of course. Nothing would be able to tear them apart, try as they might. They might fight every once in a while, okay, more like once every two weeks, but no matter what, they were all still best friends.

McGonagall walked in and looked around at her students with a look of approval on her face. "I'm glad that you are all mingled together, but if I catch you talking while I am teaching, I will move you." She told them sternly.

'_She can be nice, then in a blink of an eye, she's the meanest teacher at this school,'_ thought Draco with a chuckle.

"Do I amuse you Mr. Malfoy?" asked McGonagall, turning to glare at the 17-year-old Slytherin.

"Sorry Professor," muttered Draco and she nodded, then turned back to the class and begun the lesson. He was paying attention, or so it looked like he was. It was only a review from what they learned up into now. He did have the second highest grade in the class, the first being Hermione, of course, so he could easily pretend he was paying attention. He was glad he had McGonagall and not Binns as his first class. He wouldn't be able to pay attention at all in that class so early in the morning.

As the days wore on and as the piles of homework became mountains over night, less and less chanced of students leaving their common rooms, including Draco and Hermione. That depressed Draco more and more each day. There were less chances of him trying to win her over. Even if every one of his past attempts failed, he was still willing to try. He didn't really understand why he was doing what he was doing. He didn't even understand why she had that effect on him, but it didn't matter. He couldn't help it.

Draco closed his eyes and put his head in his hands. "Too much information," he muttered to himself, ignoring the glances the other Slytherin's in his dorm gave him. He gave up on his homework and put it in his trunk. The trunk was spelled to protect his belongings from the other Slytherins. The second they touched it with magic or with skin, they suddenly got real sick.

Draco walked out of the common room and decided to wander around a bit. The halls were much quieter without students filling in and out of classrooms. He looked up at the ceiling as he walked and sighed deeply. He heard some gasp and the sound of shoes hitting the ground in a run. He looked toward the sound and saw Hermione. His feet moved to run as he slowly caught up with her.

"Why won't you give up!" yelled Hermione as she ran. "Can't you tell that I'm not interested!"

"Because I am a stubborn bastard and that's a lie!" yelled Draco.

"What!"

"If you weren't interested, you wouldn't run!"

"I'm running in fear of being tackled!"

Draco sighed. She had a point. It wasn't that long ago when he had tackled her to the ground. He knew where she was going, having gone there plenty times himself: the Room of Requirement. She had a good lead on him, she was able to make the room appear. She closed the door, making sure no one could get in without her say so. "I'm not leaving!" Draco yelled, knowing she heard him.

"Fine!" yelled Hermione. "Neither am I!" She slumped into a bean bag chair with a sad sigh. He just didn't get it. They can't be together. Society wouldn't allow it. There would only be more sadness. She didn't want that. Maybe if they were born into a different time period, maybe they could have made it. But now, even with Voldemort gone, they wouldn't make it. Tears started to fall and she ended up crying herself to sleep.

Draco slid down the wall and waited. She wouldn't stay there over night. She'd make Harry and Ron worry and he knew she wouldn't do that. All he had to do was stay awake through the boredom that is bound to come.

He sat there, and sat there, and sat there, for hours it seemed. His eyes didn't want to stay open any longer. As he thought, boredom was winning. Soon enough, his eyes closed and he was asleep. An hour later, Hermione slowly opened the door as quietly as was possible. She looked around and saw the sleeping Draco. She slipped off her shoes and tiptoed over to him. She kneeled down next to him. He looked so peaceful and innocent when he was sleeping. She reached out her hand to brush against his face, but stopped an inch away. She pulled her hand away and rested it against her bosom.

"I'm so sorry," muttered Hermione quietly. She got up, retrieved her shoes, and quietly walked away. She would have woken him up if he weren't after her. She slipped back on her shoes when she turned the corner and headed back to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Where have you been!" asked Ron and Harry the moment she set foot in the common room. "We thought something bad happened!" said Harry.

Hermione smiled, shaking her head. "I'm fine. Really, you two worry too much. I was just taking a walk is all." Hermione smiled a fake smile.

Harry noticed this, but he didn't say anything. If something were wrong, she would talk to them. He was sure of that. The reason he thought that was wrong was the deaths of her parents, so he pretended not to notice.

'_I'm lying to my friends because of you. Why don't you see?'_ thought Hermione as she got ready for bed in her dormitory. _'It's not that I care what people think of me, no, that doesn't bother me. But we would have to hide it because no one will accept us. And what of your father, Lucius? He'd find out, what then? Would you really fight your father if it came down to it? We'd be in pain, always.' _Hermione thought before drifting off to sleep.

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Hermione! Would you just stop running!" yelled Draco a few weeks later. This was now a kind of ritual every time they saw each other, butto be truthful, Draco was getting tired of it. 

"Leave me alone! Why won't you give up already! We're been at this for weeks! Why can't you just leave me alone!" yelled Hermione. He was starting to piss her off with their games of cat and mouse.

"Not until you stop running away!" yelled Draco. "You say you're not interesting, but that's a lie!"

"How do you know how I feel!"

"I don't, but if you didn't feel anything, then you wouldn't run!" yelled Draco. "You run because you're afraid! Well, guess what? I'm afraid too! But, you do not see me running away! I'm afraid I'll turn out like my father! I'm afraid of living a life without you! I'm afraid of losing you!" They slowed down the pace. Hermione stopped first; Draco stopped once he got to her.

"How can you not realize the most important thing?" asked Hermione, tears forming in her eyes. "We met to hate each other. That's all we've ever known towards each other and then something happens and you think you're in love. That night at the lake…it was just something that happened…"

"How can you just stand there and tell me you don't share these feelings?" asked Draco quietly, fighting back tears that so badly wanted to fall. He wouldn't allow that to happen. "You stand there, telling me we met to hate each other, but I won't accept that; I can't accept that. You tell me that what happened at the lake meant absolutely nothing, you say that, but your eyes are telling me something else." He cupped her cheeks with his hands, his thumbs whipping away tears. He hands moved down to her shoulders and his forehead gently rested against hers. The tears he had been fighting back won the battle and fell to the ground.

Hermione watched him as he cried. It hurt her to see him so sad. "The only emotion you've ever shown me since I was eleven was hate. Then after two nights with being with me, you suddenly have feelings that you've never felt and suddenly you show me sadness, caring, happiness. It's all too much for me to handle."

"Why are you so different from the other girls?" muttered Draco. "Why? Why do I love you so much…so much that I'd protect you with my life? So please, stop running and stay with me." He paused for a second. "I'm so pathetic. I'm not even worthy of your time. I'm not worth it! If you decline and reject my feelings, I'll truly know that I'm worthless."

"Even with all the hardships that we'll face, you're still willing to be with me," whispered Hermione. She stroked his hair. "Oh, Draco…you are not worthless; you're a kindred spirit. And me? I'm your guardian angel. I will always be by your side. When you need to talk, I'm here. When you need to be comforted, I'm here." Draco nodded and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. She didn't protest because it felt so right.

"H-Hermione?" someone gasped from behind her. Her eyes widen and she turned around to face one of her best friends. Draco turned around so his back was to them. No one else needed to know that he had been crying.

"H-Harry I-"

"What are you doing?" whispered harry. "Is this what you've been doing when you'd go out of your walks?"

"Don't get mad at her," growled Draco. "She can't help how she feels." He didn't turn around, just folded his arms over his chest.

"And you! What the hell are you planning?" snapped Harry. He knew Draco Malfoy well enough to know that he'd never have feelings for Hermione.

Draco turned around angrily. "Planning? I'm not 'planning' anything!" He looked at Hermione, then back at Harry, everything coming in clear. "It seems, there's a lot you don't know, Potter." He kissed Hermione on the cheek and walked away. Harry looked like he was going to pass out or be sick.

"What did he mean?" asked Harry once he regained his composure. He looked at Hermione with calm, green eyes.

Hermione was speechless. Surprised and dumbfounded by the kiss. She blinked a couple times and shook her head before answering Harry's question. "The day I was informed of my parent's deaths', he came out and we talked. He's not a bad guy." She looked down. "I don't know what came over me, but I found myself leaning against him. He comforted me."

"Something me and Ron couldn't do."

"It's no one's fault," muttered Hermione. She decided not to tell Harry that Draco's mother. "Then, at the Masquerade Ball, he was my date. Something happened those two nights. I found myself thinking about him more and more, but I realized it was stupid. Me and him can't possibly be together." Her hands were folded in front of her. "So every time I saw him, I ran. Today, he told me something that I had been denying. The reason that I ran wasn't because of the fear of being tackled-long story-nor was it because of who we are. I ran because I was afraid. I was afraid of falling in love with him." She looked up at Harry. "I was afraid of losing my best friends."

Harry folded his hands on top of his head and walked around. "I had a feeling that something big would happen this year, because we seem to attract life threatening situations, but this is not what I had in mind."

"This isn't life threatening-"

Harry looked over at her. "Are you insane? Of course this is life threatening! Lucius Malfoy is a muggle-born hater! He killed your parents! Now you and his son are sharing feelings for each other! If you must, you two lay low. Don't go around showing your feelings to anyone."

Hermione's eyes widen. "You're not-"

"Of course I'm not mad!" said Harry, cutting her off again. "I'm more worried now. Just be thankful that it was me and not Ron, or anyone else for that matter, who found you."

Smiling, Hermione hugged him tightly. "I'm so happy! Thank you! I'm so glad you don't hate me! I thought for sure you would!"

"Don't you think we've been through enough together? It's gonna take me a lot to hate you. Now if you tell me your having his child, well…" said Harry, teasing her. He knew she had more decency to do that now, at her age, but he thought it fun just to tease her. He was like her brother. It was his right to tease her.

"Harry! You don't have to worry about that! That won't happen."

"Any time soon," smiled Harry. Hermione's face turned bright red and she punched him in the arm. He cursed slightly and rubbed the forming bruise. "I'm kidding Hermione. Come on; let's go back to the classroom. No word of this will be spoken to anyone." Hermione nodded and they walked off to the Gryffindor Common Room.

'_I'm so happy. I'm happy that you aren't mad. You have no idea how happy that makes me. Thank you Harry. Thank you so much,' _thought Hermione as they walked.

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**A/N: Whew! It's been some time since chapter seven was posted, but I have a standstill somewhere in the middle of the chapter that wouldn't go away for a few days. But I got over it and this is the final project. Shorter than chapter 6 and 7, but it is over 5 pages on Word, so that makes me happy. Well, Chapter Nine should be here soon. I already know what its going to be about. **

**Well. I went to Borders this weekend (January 28, 2006) and read manga all day. I'm a nerd I know, I was with one of my friends. But I read Her Majesty's Dog and Crossroad, good mangas! You should check them out! Really great. Her Majesty's Dog is a horror/romance and Crossroad is Romance/Drama/Comedy.**

**Well, that is all I have to say. I hope you enjoyed this chapter  
****So, Until Next Time  
****This is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out**


	9. Chapter Nine

**A/N: Heya all! How are you all doing? I'm glad a lot of people are reviewing this story. It makes me happy to see that it's successful. Something I wasn't counting on. (Don't I have so much confidence in myself?) Well, I know you are all dying for this chapter, so here is it.**

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'_Why do you accept me with open arms? Why? After all these past years of hate, why?'_

"_I'm your guardian angel."_

Her voice drifted through his mind as he leaned against the wall in the Room of Requirement. He sat, with her in his arms; protected and safe. Hermione's breathing was slow and her eyes were closed. She was asleep and on her lips formed a smile. Draco's gaze left the wall opposite to them and landed on Hermione.

'_I can't do this. I can't change…so, why are we here, together?'_ Draco closed his eyes. _'Why am I like this? Why do I keep bringing myself down like this?' _He brought his hands to his face and wanted to scream, but didn't or he'd wake Hermione. _'I love her. I really love her, but why does she love me back?'_

"I'm sorry Hermione," Draco muttered as he gently laid her on the ground and stood. He walked to the door, looked back at her with eyes full of sadness, and walked out. _'Please understand. I'm my father's son. I'm a Malfoy. I will only end up hurting you in the end.' _He thought as he headed for the Slytherin Common Room. He went straight to his room and closed the curtains around his bed.

Hermione opened her eyes and looked around. She remembered falling asleep in Draco's arms, but now he was no where to be found. She frowned and got off the floor. She rubbed her eyes and walked out of the Room of Requirement, heading back to her common room.

'_Why did he just leave without saying anything?' _thought Hermione. _'That's weird, normally he would tell me if he was going to leave. Of course, I've never fallen asleep on him either. Maybe he was being nice? Well, whatever the reason, I'm still worried.'_

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A day went by, then two, and Hermione hadn't seen Draco. He went to class, but he was always the first to leave. She couldn't just walk up to him and be nice. It was too risky. She sat in class, tapping the tip of her quill against the desk. When the bell rang, she tried to best to leave first, before Draco, but he always left first and was out of the hall before she got out of the classroom.

Hermione bit her cheek as she walked down the hallway. She was a little depressed, but inside she was angry. What the hell was Draco doing? He didn't show up at their meeting place for two nights now. This wasn't like him. Normally, he was always the first to be there. She was so much in thought, she didn't even realize she has bumped into someone until she hit the ground. She looked up to see Draco. Her heart skipped a beat, she really missed him, but it was quickly over powered with anger.

"Where have you been?" asked Hermione as she jumped up, ignoring his outstretched hand. "Two night Draco. Two nights I waited and you never showed up!" She thought she was angry, but she realized she was more hurt. "I was thinking you were having second thoughts." Draco grabbed her hand and they went to the Room of Requirement. Once they got into the room, Draco sat down on a couch. "So? Is there something wrong?"

Draco closed his eyes, putting his face in his hands. "I'm sorry okay? I'm so sorry." Hermione dropped to her knees in front of him and removed his hands from his face. His eyes were full of sorrow. Hermione rested her head on his knees.

"Tell me what's wrong. I'll listen," muttered Hermione. It pained her to see his eyes full of sorrow. She might not be able to take away all of his pain, but if she could at least take some of it, it would make her feel better.

"I love you. I really do. I love you so much that I'm scared. I fear for us," muttered Draco. He heard her gasp, but she didn't say anything, so he went on. "I love you so much that I started to distance myself." He shook his head. "I don't want to hurt you. I don't want you to get hurt because of me. I'm a Malfoy." That made Hermione look up at him, a confused look on her face. "No matter what, I'm my father's son. I can't change that."

"But you are not your father!"

"What do you see when you look at me Hermione?"

Hermione looked up at him, really look at him. "I won't deny that you are a splitting image of your father, but your eyes are nothing like your father's. His are cold and full of hatred, always. Yours used to be cold and emotionless, but now, when you look at me, I see love and happiness and sometimes, if I look hard enough, there's sadness. Why? Is it because you think you are going to become just like your father?" Hermione stood up and sat next to him. "You will only become like your father if you start acting like him. You won't if you don't allow it. Sure, you're his son, but you are not him."

Draco stared at her. he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you." Hermione smiled warmly. _'Why? Why do you always say the things that I need to hear the most? I hope, when you need to talk, I can say all the right things; all the things that you need to hear the most.'_

"So, please, don't leave me again," muttered Hermione. "If you're having second thoughts or you're depressed, talk to me. I want to know what's wrong." She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, taking in his sent.

"Thank you. Thank you for being by my side. I'm not going to run away anymore. I'm going to be the kind of person you're going to be proud of," muttered Draco. "The kind of person who will love you endlessly."

"Oh Draco, don't you see? I'm very proud of you. I love you. I always will, no matter what happens. I will always love you," whispered Hermione. She pulled away from him so she could look into his eyes. "Remember that."

'_Oh Hermione,' _thought Draco as he placed his hand on her cheek. _'Thank you. You don't know how much you are helping me.' _It was like slow motion, like the moment would last forever. He never wanted to let it end. _'You know exactly all the right things to say.' _For the week and a half they were officially together, their lips hadn't met. He wanted their first kiss to be special and knew she wanted it too. He moved in and tilted her head gently. She closed her eyes. _'Why? You really are my angel. Mine and mine alone, but why? Why did you choose this lonely soul?' _The moment he knew he wasn't going to miss, he closed his eyes and closed the gap between them.

His stomach clenched and he got the spark of chemistry. Her mouth opened, allowing him to explore. Hormones took over as his hands went to her shoulders, slowly slipping off her school robe. He slowly laid her down, his lips never leaving hers.

The second she realized she was about to do something that went against her morals, her eyes snapped open. "No!" she said and used all her strength to push him up. His hands went to either side of her, his eyes locked as he held himself up off her. Her hands were on his chest. His eyes looked into hers and he immediately regretted what he just did. She rolled off the couch, making Draco face-plant it. She pulled up her robe as she walked away without a word. Hermione wrapped her arms around her chest. Draco closed his eyes for a moment and got off the couch, following her.

"I'm sorry," Draco muttered as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. She closed her eyes. "I really screwed up the moment." Hermione nodded. That made him feel worse. "I-I don't know what came over me. Saying 'It was hormones' sounds like a pathetic excuse for what I did. Forgive me."

For a moment, Hermione didn't say anything. Draco thought she wasn't going to forgive him. "Of course you're forgiven," she said as she turned around in his arms. "I love you too much to hate you, but that doesn't mean I want to have sex with you. Not right now; not at school either." Her hands cupped his cheeks. His eyes were still full of sorrow and regret. "Get that look out of your eyes."

"I can't help it. When you pushed me off, the look in your eyes was fear. Now I can't get that look out of my mind. I don't blame you either, because of what happened at the masquerade ball," Draco said sadly. He was so ashamed and disgusted with himself for his actions. He nuzzled his cheek against her hands before grabbing it and kissing her palm. "Why are you still with me? Why aren't you angry?"

Hermione stared up at him. "Do you want me to leave you?" She backed out of his hold. His hands hung in midair for a moment before they dropped to his sides. He looked at her with solemn eyes. She looked down at the floor, examining a speck that had caught her attention.

Draco shook his head. "Of course not." Hermione looked back at him. "Without you, I'd be lost, like I was these past two days; like I was my whole life. I just didn't realize that I was lost until I came to love you. But why do you love me back? Me, of all people, why me?" He dropped to his hands and knees.

Hermione stared at him for a moment, then dropped to her knees in front of him. "There are questions that even the wisest can't answer. And that is one of them. I can't tell you why my heart choose you, but I'm glad it did. I'm not having doubts or regrets." Hermione hugged his shaking shoulders. "So, please, stop trying to run away. I want to be with you. I want to try and erase your pain. I want you to stay with me." Tears started to fall from her eyes as well as Draco's.

Here they were, a Slytherin and a Gryffindor, in a hug, crying with each other. No one else, Harry the exception, would ever allow them to walk around the school, hand-in-hand. A pureblood from a pureblood obsessed family and a muggle-born, a mudblood, together. Their love was greater than anyone else's.

'_I always assumed that no one would ever understand me. I never thought I'd hear those words. Just like that, the ugly emotions inside me, the mud-covered anxiety, one by one, you melt them away. Why would someone like you stay near me and cry for me? How can I ask for that? I don't deserve something like that. You ended up near me by mistake. This time will be different. This time I want to care for you. I don't want us to be apart. How can I ask for that?' _Draco thought as they cried with each other in the Room of Requirement, the only place in the school where they are freely express their love in their own ways. Days to come will be different, especially after this conversation. But that will be okay. They loved each other too much. Their shoulders shook together. It was hard to tell where his shakes ended and hers began.

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**A/N: Okay, so this is almost five pages on Word, but it didn't really make the cut. But, I don't want to add anything else to this. I already added the last part, and I might have slightly ruined it. Draco's last thoughts on this chapter is not mine. It's said, er thought,by Kyo Sohma in Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya. I do not own that line. I just really love that line. It really tied in with this chapter in a way.**

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Except when the kissing scene came up. I'm not very good at that sort of writing, which explains why my writing it for the younger teens. Not young people in general because the language isn't very good.**

**Well, not much else to say, except thank you to all who have reviewed this story. Means a lot to me!**

**Until the next chapter  
****This is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out!**


	10. Chapter Ten

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I was brain dead. I couldn't think of a way I wanted to start the chapter for a while. So, I'll start the chapter now because I know you all want it.**

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"This is the third meeting that boy has skipped out on since before Christmas!" growled Lucius Malfoy, pacing the room of the remaining death-eaters hide out. A little house elf scurried behind him; her eyes full of fear.

"His schooling is important, sir," muttered the house elf in a high pitched voice that was coated with fear. She hunched her should up in fear of being hit by Lucius' wand. He turned to glare at her; she coward even more.

"You are right," he admitted through clenched teeth, "but these meeting are for his future. It's odd that he has been missing these meetings, though." His hand went to his chin and he stroked it in thought.

"It is possible that he found out about what happened to his mother," muttered Tipi, the house elf. Lucius' wand flashed and struck her in the stomach. "I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to offend you, sir!"

"The Ministry is not stupid though. Their investigation wizards are trained well. There is a slight possibility that they figured out who killed the little bitch," Lucius said with a thoughtful tone. "But, they aren't smart enough to find us." He added ruefully and laughed bitterly. It made Tipi shiver in fear. "I want you to go work at Hogwarts. See what that boy has been doing." Tipi nodded and vanished into thin air with a snap of her fingers.

* * *

"You won't believe this, sir," said Tipi a few weeks later. "Me thinks the boy is in a relationship with a girl." Lucius glared at her. He didn't care if his son was with some girl. Tipi flinched. "Not just any girl, sir, but her name is Hermione Granger."

"What?" snapped Lucius. As quick as a snake on its prey, Lucius grabbed Tipi's pillowcase and lifted her off the ground. "You lie! My son wouldn't bring himself so low as to date a mudblood!"

"B-But it's true, sir! Tipi really did see him with a brown-haired girl!" Tipi stuttered, very much afraid of being hit. "She came into the kitchens with Harry Potter, sir! They talked about her and Draco!"

Lucius let go of Tipi. She fell into a heap on the ground. His face was read with fury. How dare his son run around with a filthy, lower than dirt, mudblood! "It seems I have to pay my son a visit and teach him a lesson." He smiled evilly. "I have a better idea. Yes. That would be wonderful."

"How will you go through with you plan?" asked Tipi. "They'll throw you to Azkaban if you get caught, sir."

"The next Hogsmeade trip is when?"

"Next Saturday."

"That's when I'll make my move. Now, back to Hogwarts with you."

"Yes, sir," muttered Tipi before she vanished.

* * *

"Harry! Where's Ron?" asked Hermione as she barged into the common room. Harry looked up from his homework.

"Detention."

"Oh, that's right," muttered Hermione. "I have a favor to ask of you." Harry raised his eyebrows in question. "Can I borrow your Invisibility Cloak?"

Harry frowned. "What for?"

"Me and Draco want to go to Hogsmeade together," whispered Hermione, very quietly. Harry had to lean in to hear her. "It would be problematic if someone were to see us together, you know."

"Oh yeah, go ahead," smiled Harry. "What'll I tell Ron where you are?" Neither Hermione nor Harry had the courage to tell Ron about Hermione and Draco. They both knew that he would end up hating them. Hermione knew she had to tell him at some point, but it wasn't time yet.

"Don't say anything unless he asks."

"And if he does?"

"Tell him I'm having girl issues and I've locked myself in the bathroom," muttered Hermione. She smiled as Harry's face gave her a disgusted expression. "He won't ask or even bother you about me after that. Thanks, I owe you one."

"One? You think you owe me just once?" smirked Harry. "You owe me a lot. I could have easily ratted you out about you and him."

Hermione smiled. "I'll be in debt for the rest of my life, huh?" Harry nodded. "Oh well, thank again Harry."

"No problem."

* * *

Draco walked into Hogsmeade, easily darting the third years that were overly excited, even if it was the third Hogsmeade trip of the year. He was glad that he didn't have to wear his uniform today. It was a little warm. He just threw on a short sleeve shirt and some pants. He put his hands in his pockets and slowly made his way to the Shrieking Shack where he was supposed to meet Hermione.

He didn't notice or didn't hear the snap of a twig or the rustle of the bushes. He was intent on meeting Hermione. That was the only thing on his mind. He didn't care about the sounds or people around him. They weren't the ones who stole his heart, but he still should have been a little more aware of his surroundings.

A hand appeared out of thin air and grabbed his wrist, pulling him into the thick trees. Draco's other hand pulled out his wand and pointed at where he guess the body was. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," hissed the man, jabbing his wand into Draco's neck. Draco stared down at the wand. He eyes widen. He knew that wand. The handle was a snake. This was his father's wand!

"Why the hell are you here?" growled Draco. His voice was full of hatred and disgust. "Let go you bastard." Lucius pulled off the cloak and punched Draco in the stomach. The impact half-surprised and half-shocked him. He fell to his hands and knees.

"Don't you dare talk to me like that, you ungrateful son!" hissed Lucius. He kept his wand pointed at Draco. "Now, tell me, why the hell are you running around with that mudblood bitch?" He growled at Draco and waited for a response.

"How did you know about that?" asked Draco. He didn't look up to see Lucius' death glared. He could feel his eyes on him.

"I have my ways Draco," hissed Lucius. "But that is not what I asked!" He kicked Draco in the stomach, sending him rolling about two feet away. Draco laid in the dirt. His wand lay forgotten a few feet away. "Now, tell me, why are you with that mudblood?"

"Stop it! Stop calling her that!" coughed Draco. He got to his hands and knees. "You don't know her like I do. She's the smartest witch in our year, possibly in the school." Draco stood up and glared at his father. "What are you trying to accomplish? You're worthless without your precious Lord."

Lucius rested the tip of his wand on Draco's neck. "Don't make me kill you boy!"

"Is this how you killed my mother? Did you beat her so bad, she couldn't move? You killed her like a coward because you didn't let her fight back!" yelled Draco, his face red with fury.

Lucius' face screwed up in anger. He jabbed Draco with his wand and was about to mutter the killing curse, but changed his mind. His smiled was cruel and twisted. He was up to something and Draco knew it was going to be bad. "No, I won't kill you, but I'll make you're life so miserable, you'll wish I had killed you." Draco stared at him.

* * *

Draco walked out of the cluster of bushes and trees. His clothes looked like nothing happened and his bruises were under a concealment charm. He headed to the Shrieking Shack and looked around. He didn't see Hermione and figured she was under the Invisibility Cloak. Suddenly he felt weight on his back and the Invisibility Cloak flew around him.

"Hey stranger," smiled Hermione. "I was starting to get worried." She kissed him on the cheek.

"Well, you shouldn't have worried," he muttered rudely and pulled the coat off himself. Hermione frowned and let the cloak sip to the ground.

"Draco? Is something wrong?" Hermione asked quietly. Her fingers brushed against his cheek.

Draco took a step back and glared at her. "You're something else. I can't believe you actually think I love you." Hermione's eyes widen and she took a step back. "I can't believe you thought I would change myself for you! You're something else, or maybe just stupid?" He shook his head in disappointment. "Yeah, I would really fall in love with you after two nights." He laughed. The laugh chilled Hermione; made her shiver. "This was fun while it lasted, I guess, but in the end, you're nothing but a filthy little mudblood."

Hermione's eyes swelled up wit tears. That word hadn't affected her as much in the past, but hearing him say it now hurt. Draco smirked and walked away. Hermione grabbed Harry's cloak and ran back to the castle and locked herself up in one of the girls' bathrooms.

She stayed in the bathroom for the rest of the day. She didn't want to talk to anyone. She had to think what happened. All the tears, all the words, that kiss, it was all a lie. A big lie that only she had fallen for it. She couldn't believe it. She didn't want to either, but it had happened.

She left when it was almost curfew. She slowly made her way back to the common room. It seemed to take forever because she had a lot of thoughts running through her mind. She felt like collapsing and crying again. She looked up and something caught her attention. Frowning, she walked up to it and gasped. She knew what that was! It was a glede, a dragon's eye! She reached out for it, but hesitated. What was a glede doing here, anyway? Maybe someone dropped it. She should turn it in. she picked it up and was immediately pulled in by an invisible force. The glede was a portkey!

Hermione landed on her hands and knees. She sat back on her haunches and looked around. There wasn't much to see. It looked like she was in a small basement. Shelves lined the walls, full of dusty books and vials of various liquids. She heard something around her and spun around, getting to her feet at the same time. She glared at the blonde haired man.

"What the hell are you doing here?" snapped Hermione angrily. She took a step back for every step forward her took until she hit the wall.

Lucius laughed. The sound sent shivers up and down her back. "Trapped like a rat, right Draco?"

Draco stepped closer to Hermione, until he was inches from her face. Hermione stared at him. She couldn't bring herself to glare or even meet his eyes. "What's wrong Granger? Where's that glare you used to give me every time I walked by? I truly miss it." Draco smirked and laughed. It sounded just like his father's laugh, but at the same time, it didn't. As quick as lightning, Hermione's wand was at Draco's neck. He smirked at her. "Do it, I dare you." Hermione looked up at him, in the eyes, and hers grew wide. She lowered her wand and looked down. "I thought so."

Lucius looked at the ceiling. "Stay here with her, Draco. Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." He ordered his son before laving the room. Draco looked over his shoulder and nodded. He looked back at Hermione, waiting for her to do something. Draco slowly walked away and leaned against the opposite wall. He smirked as he noticed her chin was quivering.

"Draco," muttered Hermione. She stayed where she was.

"Granger, please don't say my name like that, it makes me twitch."

"Draco," she repeated, not caring if it upset him or not. He stalked over to her, fury written all over his face, but she stood her ground. He put his hands flat on the wall on either side of her head.

"Do no make me hit you, Granger," growled Draco quietly. Hermione felt her knees go weak, but she refused to move. Hermione started into his eyes and saw hatred, utter hatred, but if she looked past that, she saw pain, and sorrow, and love.

"You have to break your father's control over you," whispered Hermione. She slowly and shakily raised her hand to brush against his cheek. Draco lowered his head, fighting the control his father currently had over his body. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug. He breathed in her sweet smell and fell to his hands and knees, Hermione went done with him.

"I'm so sorry, Hermione," he muttered in her ear. Hermione cupped his cheek with her hand. He flinched and moved his head away from her hand. "You don't deserve someone like me, so…please, you have to go. I'll make sure you get out of here and back to Hogwarts safely. I promise you." Tears formed in her eyes.

"Draco, no, I won't leave without you," cried Hermione softly. Draco leaned forward and kissed his passionately. His hand cupped her cheek, his thumb stoked her cheek.

"That is the extent of my love. I'm sorry."

"What? Why?"

"I can't run away from the man I'm gong to become," Draco closed his eyes, refusing the urge to cry. "I will only end up hurting you."

"You are hurting me…" whispered Hermione. She looked down and covered her face with her hands and cried. This was all too much. His words stabbed at her heart.

Draco looked at her and felt his heart break. He removed her hands from her face and kissed her palms. "Please stop crying over me. I'm not worth it. You can't be sad over me. You have to leave here and find someone better; someone who will make you forget all about me."

"I don't want anyone else. I only want you," cried Hermione. "You're the only one I want to be with, to kiss, to love! Please don't make me leave here without you. I won't be happy with anyone else. You're the only one I'll ever love with all my heart."

Draco closed his eyes tightly. "Stop it! Don't tell me those things. You're making it harder. You're tearing my heart in two. It's because I love you that we have to go our separate ways."

"That doesn't make any sense!" cried Hermione loudly. Draco covered her mouth with his hand and listen intently for any sign of Lucius. When a few moments passed, he looked back at Hermione and removed his hand. "You are not your father. Malfoy is just a name. It means nothing of who you are going to be."

"We're already had this conversation."

"Then don't make me repeat myself!"

_WHAM!_ An invisible force knocked Draco into the opposite wall. He slid down the wall and onto the floor. Hermione screamed out his name. Lucius stood at the door, a disgusted look on his face. Draco coughed and stood up, glaring at his father. "I am disgusted! How dare you touch her! But I have to say, I'm impressed." Draco blinked in confusion. "You managed to break my Imperius Curse."

Draco pulled out his wand and yelled, _"Expelliarmus!"_ Lucius managed to hold onto his hand, but he was thrown back. "Go Hermione!"

"No! I won't!"

"If you love me, you'll go!" yelled Draco as he pinned his father to the ground. "Go!"

Hermione looked down in defeat. "I love you…" she muttered before she apparated out of the room and back to Hogsmeade. As soon as she could, she ran as fast as she could to the castle.

* * *

**A/N: WOOHOO! Finally, I got this chapter finished and it's just under 8 pages on word too! So, it's a little long. I hope you guys like it! I really enjoyed writing this chapter. So sad! I got this idea in the middle of chapter 7, so it's been in my head for sometime. I just had to get it out soon. Also, I see about two or maybe three more chapters of this story. I just don't know how to end it yet.**

**Um, I hope you all like this chapter. A lot of stuff going on. I didn't mean for Draco to become an emo kid in this fic…but that's how it turned out, didn't it? Oh well, he makes a good emo kid! Hehhehheehe well, I've already started chapter eleven, so it should be here in two or so weeks. **

**Oh, and I don't know if me, Scott, and Alex are going to keep going with Harry Potter Idol…it's not as successful as it was in the beginning and we're just getting sick of writing it I guess. **

**Oh, I always started to write my frist AU story (AU-Alternate Universe, or something that could NEVER happen) This is the summary, tell me what you all think: **

**Angels and Demons  
For as long as anyone could remember, angels and demons never got along, but there wererarely any outbreaks between the two. Then something happened...no one knows what. After getting into a fight with her father, the Angel Princess flew down to Earth. There she met the cold Demon Prince.**

**What do you all think? I've already got three pages on my notebook. I just want to know what people think about it before I actually started to type it on the computer.  
**

**Well, until next time  
This is Kiwi-san  
Over and Out **


	11. Chapter Eleven

**A/N: YAY! Chapter 11 is here! It took me a while because I was at a standstill in the middle of the chapter again. This one might not be so long, because I have the prefect way of ending it, but I will try my hardest to make it as long as I can.**

**I was going to have this as the last chapter or have one more chapter after this or something, but I got a good idea and decided that this is only about midpoint, maybe a little after that or something. So, I'm not sure how many more chapters of this story there is anymore. I hope you all enjoy this chapter hehehehehehe**

* * *

"Harry!" cried Hermione quietly. She shook him roughly. "Wake up!"

Harry looked up at her with blurry eyes and groped on his bedside table for his glasses. Once they were on, he frowned. "Hey, what's wrong? Did you just get back? What happened?"

"It's Draco and his father," muttered Hermione. "They're fighting. Draco'll get killed if we don't do something! Lucius won't be afraid to kill him! You know that! We have to stop them!"

"Draco? Since when has it been Draco?" Ron stood up and looked at them. "What's going on here?" Hermione's tears filled eyes widen. "Are you crying?"

"We have to go help Draco!" Hermione ran over to him and cried in his chest. Ron looked at Harry. "Please. If there's anything that I need from you two, it's now. I need you to help me. Please. I-I love him!"

Ron's eyes widen as he pulled her away by her shoulders. "What? How long?"

"Christmas," muttered Harry. Ron stared at him.

"You knew?" asked Ron. Harry nodded. "And you didn't tell me? Why not?"

"I'm sorry Ron," sniffed Hermione quietly. "I'll explain everything later, please, you have to help me save him. I need you Ron, please!"

Ron closed his eyes and sighed. "Where are they?"

"Oh no," Hermione fell to her hands and knees. Ron and Harry knelt next to her. they looked at the other three boys they shared a dormitory with and were glad they were heavy sleepers. "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"I-I went there through a portkey," muttered Hermione. She reached into her pocket and took out the glede. "I bet you anything that where I was was the hide-out to the surviving death-eaters. We'll be able to get two birds with one stone."

"We just have one problem: we don't know where they are!" Ron reminded them.

"Oh! We apparate!" Hermione said slowly and quietly. "I remember what the room looks like. I can take you two with me." She got up off the floor.

* * *

Just as Hermione left with a crack, Lucius broke free of Draco's pin. As Lucius got up, he rammed Draco into the nearest wall. The fight was more physical then magical. Neither cared how the other got hurt, as long as they hurt them.

"Don't think for a second that I won't kill you," growled Lucius as he pinned Draco against the wall. Draco jabbed him in the stomach with his wand, but at the moment, he was too angry to figure a spell quickly.

"The thought won't even cross my mind," hissed Draco. Lucius punched him in the jaw as Draco kicked him in the stomach. "I didn't think you'd use your feet and hands more than you would a wand."

"Keh! You want magic? Then magic you get!" snarled Lucius. A rainbow of colored sparks shot from his wand, one at a time, one after another. Draco could only get a few offensive spells out at him, but he was mostly on the defensive side. "I see you're getting slow." Lucius taunted, but Draco ignored him. "The pathetic mudblood must have rubbed off on you."

Angry by the fact Lucius had brought Hermione into the fight, he charged without thinking. How dare he bring her in this! He didn't know how much his angel helped him throughout this year. Lucius didn't know that she was right there when he was on the brink of life and death. His gift from God. His Guardian Angel. _His_ angel. His first and only love. His one and only.

So, why did he just break it off? He slowed down his movements just a tad. It was enough for Lucius to punch in the stomach, sending Draco into the wall. His head hit the concrete wall and he slid down until he hit the floor. Blood dripping down his chin and onto the ground. Everything was spinning. He stared up at his father.

Lucius knelt down in front of Draco. Draco only stared back. His head spun too much to narrow his eyes into a glare. "The resemblance is uncanny," muttered Lucius. "You look just like I did when I was your age." His eyes were narrowed into a glare. His cold gray-as-stone eyes only showed hate. "What is it with boys getting their mother's eyes?" His glare met Draco's silver colored eyes, which were full of pain, misery, and sadness. "Potter has his mother's green eyes and you have Narcissa's silver eyes…but that is all you have taken from that dirty bitch."

Draco's eyes flashed with rage as he kicked Lucius in the stomach. Outraged, Lucius punched him in the jaw, giving Draco a bloody lip and another bruise to add to his growing collection. "I may look like you, for the most part, but I will never act like you and do not bring my mother of Hermione in this!" Draco managed to say.

"Trying to give me orders now, are you?" quietly said Lucius in a hiss. He smirked. He wasn't going to kill him, not yet at least. He was going to bring him so much pain, he'll want to die.

* * *

Hermione, Ron, and Harry ran out of the castle, ignoring Mr. Filch and Mrs. Norris as Filch yelled at them to get back to their dorms. They knew he would inform Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape would somehow find out soon too, but by the time they got to Hogsmeade, the trio would already be gone.

They didn't stop running until they reached the passage way to Hogsmeade on the third floor. Harry tapped the statue, muttered the spell, and they stepped back as it opened. Hermione slid in first, followed by Ron, then Harry so he could tap it closed again.

Slowly and quietly they made their way out of Honeydukes, like ninjas. They kept their eyes on the ceiling, just in case they heard the storeowners get up out of bed. Once outside, Hermione held out her arms. Ron and Harry gripped them tightly, and with a crack, they left Hogsmeade.

With another crack, they were in the basement. At the sound of the crack, Lucius and Draco turned to stare, their eyes growing wide. They had good reason too. Lucius because he wasn't expecting the killer of his Lord. Draco because he wasn't expecting her to come back and no one was expecting Ron to come at all, but it was to be expected, should have been. They were the "Golden Trio" after all. They always were together, doing life-risking situations. No matter if they were fighting.

"Hermione…" muttered Draco, his eyes watering up a little. Draco was sitting down in one of the corners. A line of blood, mixing with a tear, trickled out of the corner of his eye. His hair was stained with patches of blood. A slash went across his face and stomach, bleeding.

Lucius glared at his son. His face lit up with anger at the tears. "Stop it! Stop crying!" His fist made contact with Draco's cheek. Hermione cried out loud and death-eaters filed the room. Harry and Ron busied themselves with them as Hermione ran to Draco.

"Stop it!" cried Hermione. She fell to her knees in front of Draco, facing Lucius. She felt Draco reached out for her hand. She grabbed his hand as her eyes overflowed with tears. "You're going to kill him!"

"Of course I'm going to kill him…but I'm going to kill you first and make him watch," said Lucius. His gray eyes glared at her tear-filled brown eyes.

"Hermione!" yelled Harry and Ron, but spells hit them, sending them flying. Hermione glanced at them, but stared back at Lucius fearfully.

"I'm surprised you came back," muttered Lucius. He paced slowly in front of them. "Didn't anyone ever tell you to listen to what you're told? If you were smart, you would have stayed at the castle. At least you'd live a little longer." Lucius cackled.

"And just stand back and let you kill him?" Hermione managed to say angrily. "I love him too much to abandon him like that!" She felt Draco squeeze her hand and she squeezed back. "I bet you don't even understand how we feel about each other."

Lucius pointed her want at her and muttered a spell. She had no time to react and the spell hit her before she could get her wand. She started to shiver and turned pale rapidly. Her body became cold, but she felt like she was burning up inside. Lucius stared at her, smirking. She felt Draco's breathing speed up in anger. His arm snaked around her waist and pulled her off him.

Draco got to his feet with a little difficulty. His growing anger was feeding him strength. He ran at his father. His shoulder went into Lucius' stomach, but he kept running until they hit a wall. Lucius slumped over Draco's shoulders slightly; the air knocked out of him.

That didn't last long though. Before Draco could back off, Lucius kneed him in the stomach. Draco fell to his stomach, his cheek against the cold concrete ground. He glanced back at Hermione. The color was coming back to her. the spell had lifted once Lucius hit the wall. He sighed and closed his eyes. _'I'm sorry I couldn't protect you anymore, but I can't even move…I love you…I love you Hermione! Thank you for always being there when I needed it the most! I love you! Please, don't cry for long over my death. And please find someone you can do a better job at loving and protecting you than I can!' _Tears started to fall, making the concrete a little darker where they hit.

Lucius raise his wand, pointing it at Draco's back. An evil glint resided in his eyes. He glanced at Hermione. She was watching, but couldn't do anything because the spell he used drained her strength. Would have killed her if Draco hadn't interfered, but at least he could have one of them watch while he killed the other. Maybe it was better to kill Draco in front of Hermione, then kill her in front of her best friends. His smirk grew wide, almost like a smile, as he looked back at Draco. "Avada--"

"I don't think so," Harry was on the floor near them. his eyes grew wide as he heard the first letter of the spell. He brought his legs around and kicked Lucius in the back of his knees. The surprise and force of it sent Lucius to his knees. "Grab Hermione and meet us at the Headquarters!" Harry yelled to Ron. Ron nodded and ran to get Hermione. As soon as Ron grabbed her wrist, they were gone. Harry kicked Lucius in the face before grabbing Draco's wrist and leaving with a crack of his own.

Lucius roared with outrage. They had slipped right through his fingers. He had them tightly in his fist and they managed to slip out, like rats. He fell to his stomach. He hadn't expected the fight with Draco to give him so much pain and a lot of strength taken from him. He felt bruises form all over his body. Every where ached and he wasn't through yet. As soon as he was in prefect condition, he was going to strike and next time they won't be so lucky.

* * *

**A/N: Whew! I added a bunch to get it to reach page five on word. And it worked! I like how it turned out though. I didn't have the last paragraph, or Draco's thoughts before he thought he was going to die, and I added a lot more detail into the paragraphs.**

**A lot of you were worried that I would kill off Draco. I could NEVER do that! It would probably make me cry or something. I have to admit, as I wrote this chapter and past chapters, I got really teary eyed. It was so sad. None of my family members noticed though because every time I got to a sad part I was alone. Not purposely, but it just happened that way.**

**I almost put a Rent song on here somewhere. I wanted to too. But I couldn't find a good spot for it, so I threw that idea away and I'm glad I did. It would have ruined the chapter a lot. **

**Well, nothing more to talk about.  
So, this is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out! **


	12. Chapter Twelve

**A/N: It's been to long! OMG I AM SO SORRY!**

**But I've been studying for the state test and now I'm in the middle of taking them, then I have to take two college entrance thing of thingy exams and I've been cramming that. Thank goodness Summer Break is in less than a month for me. That's when I'll be able to write a lot again. Again, I'm sorry for the wait. I know you all are just dying for it! So, enough of my babbling, let's get to the story! tehe**

* * *

Harry cracked in his house, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. He draped Draco's arm around his neck and walked into the living room. "You need to go on a diet," huffed Harry. He felt rapid warmth where Draco was leaning, unconsciously, on him. Draco was bleeding profusely. Harry gently set him on the couch. 

"Kreacher!" yelled Harry. The rude house elf popped in front of him, muttering obscenities under his breath. "Go to Hogwarts and get Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, and Pomfrey. Hurry!" He told the house elf. Kreacher left with a pop and a rude gesture to Harry. "Hey! Ron! Hermione!" Harry yelled again. He heard footsteps running down the stairs.

"Draco!" cried Hermione. She was about to throw herself on him, but Harry stopped her.

"Ron, go get some ointment to stop the bleeding, reduce the swelling and bruises too. There should be some in the bathroom," ordered Harry. Ron nodded and left. "We have to stop the bleeding. Take off his shirt, will you?" he asked Hermione.

Hermione gently tapped Draco's clothes and held out her palm. The thread holding the shirt together rolled into a ball in her palm. She picked off the loose pieces and her eyes widen. Three deep slashes went down his chest. Bruises littered his body. It would surprise her if he had a broken rib.

"Here," Harry handed her a towel. "Help me soak up some of the blood. It would be easier if we were trained healers, but this is all we can do until Kreacher comes back with Dumbledore and the others." Ron came back and gently set all the bottles on the table. He walked away from them and leaned against the farthest wall. Harry nudged Hermione and glanced at Ron. "Talk to him."

Hermione sighed and left Draco to explain things to Ron. Harry poured a potion that slowed bleeding over the three slashes on Draco's chest and lifted him off the couch with magic. He wound bandages around his torso, with magic. Hermione and Ron came back and Hermione took over being the healer.

When she did all she could without the training of a healer, Hermione grabbed Draco's hand and rested her cheek on it. Her thumb stroked his hand under her cheek. "Oh, Draco, please, don't leave me. I know it's hard, but we have to fight it. Together." Hermione leaned over him and kissed him gently on the lips.

She was pushed out of the way when Madam Pomfrey arrived just as Hermione sat back down. "Okay, everyone out and keep quiet." She ordered. Everyone left.

They walked into the kitchen, followed by Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape. The six sat down around the table. "What happened tonight?" asked Snape, trying his best to hide his concern over the boy.

"It actually started this afternoon, at Hogsmeade," muttered Hermione. She looked down at her lap. Images of today's events played over in her mind like a movie. She told them about how strange Draco was acting. Then, she pulled out the glede from her pocket and handed it to Dumbledore. She told them what happened in the cellar and everything else that had happened that night.

Once Hermione finished the story, Dumbledore nodded, dismissing them. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went upstairs to one of the room. They sat on the ground, their knees touching.

"I can't believe you guys kept Hermione dating Malfoy for so long," commented Ron. He stared at his hands. They all did.

"You are dense," muttered Harry. Ron shoved him. "I figured something like this would happen." Hermione and Ron looked at him, confusion across their faces. "I mean, not this, but in December, I wandered what life and friend risking adventure we'd go on together with Voldemort gone; what terrifying stunt we'd do. Falling in love was the first thing that came to my mind." He looked at them, emerald green eyes calm. "But, I never thought of Hermione falling for Malfoy and vise versa."

"It's just one of those things that happen," said Hermione. "I can't help, but love him. I'm sorry if you can't except that Ron, but please. You're one of my best friends."

"I never said I wasn't going to except it!" Ron said defensively. "It's just weird, is all." He shrugged. "But, after tonight, I can tell he truly loves you. There's nothing I can do about it, except stand next to you."

"We have to lay low for a while," said Harry. He glanced from Ron to Hermione. "Lucius will be hunting us down now."

"And me and Draco were ready to stop hiding and see how the school would react, seeing us together," muttered Hermione. She sighed. "I'll wait though, I have too. We can't risk having anyone else seeing us now."

"Does Ginny know?"

Hermione shook her head. "The only people who know are currently in this house." Ron nodded. "Oh, and Lucius and the rest of the death-eaters." There was a knock on the door and it opened. The Trio looked up to see who it was.

"Mr. Malfoy wants to see you, Ms. Granger," said Madam Pomfrey. Hermione got up and raced downstairs. She quietly opened the door to the room Draco was in and silently walked in, not wanting to make much noise. She sat down on the floor next to the couch, in the same spot she was before Madam Pomfrey came.

Hearing her come in, Draco opened his eyes and looked over at her. He reached out and wiped a tear that was about to fall from her eye. She hadn't even realized she was about to cry. "Come here, get off the ground," Draco said, patting his stomach. "I want to hold you."

"I might be too much weight for your body to handle," Hermione said, worry covering her voice. Draco shrugged. "I could really hurt you."

"Please Hermione," he begged. "I really want you in my arms." He moved up some, so he was in more of a sitting position, but still lying down.

Hermione smiled warmly at him. "If it starts to hurt, tell me okay?" Draco nodded. He was thankful the couch was wide, so she would have no problem getting herself up and on him.

Hermione got off the ground and went to the end of the couch, where his feet were, and crawled back to him. She carefully straddled him and hoped no one walked in. she slowly and with care, lowered herself onto his chest. He moved his legs apart so hers could go between them and they wouldn't be uncomfortable. He winced a few times, but quickly got over it. Once she was settled, he wrapped his arms around her. They both closed their eyes, completely content.

"I'm sorry," muttered Draco after a few moments of silence.

"Why?" whispered Hermione. She felt that if she talked too loud, the atmosphere and the mood would become imperfect. She didn't move either. "It's not your fault."

"I wasn't strong enough to break his spell," muttered Draco. He slowly ran his hand up and down her back. "If I was strong enough, none of this would have happened. It _is_ my fault." Tears brimmed at the edges of his eyes.

"No it's not Draco," whispered Hermione. "I'm not going to blame you, so please, don't ask me too. We both made it out okay. We're alive, so is Harry and Ron." She slid her hand into his and hung it off the couch. Her thumb stroked where it rested on his hand.

"You are so…perfect…for me…" muttered Draco. He squeezed her hand, unable to kiss her in the position they were in. A million thoughts went through his mind. He tried to sort them, but found that he couldn't. All he could do was anchor one, hold onto it for a while, then it floated away, replaced by another. "I love you, Hermione." He paused. "I think if I loved you and you didn't love me back, I would still be in love with you. Nothing…no one…can change that, no matter what happens. Deep in my heart, I will always love you." He squeezed her hand again.

"There's no way I couldn't love you back," whispered Hermione, giving his hand a squeeze.

"I'll never let you go. I'll never give you up. I don't care if that's totally selfish. I'm never letting go. Never. No one can make me. No one," muttered Draco, saying whatever came to mind. His eyes remained closed. He could feel her heart race and knew she could feel his. He brought their clasped hands to his face and kissed her hand softly.

Hermione didn't say anything. She let his love-filled words was over her. He seemed to be enjoying talking to her like that. She knew she was his first love, first real relationship. The words he spoke made her love him more and more.

"Marry me," muttered Draco.

* * *

**A/N: AHAHAHAHA! Cliffy! I know! I know! I shouldn't do this to you! Especially after making you waitalmost two monthsfor this chapter. But I just saw Gilmore Girls and this was how the episode ended, so I thought this was so perfect! Don't worry, I'll try not to make you wait so long this time. Now that I've finished this** **chapter, I can't wait to write Hermione's reaction! Tehe it's going to be so cute! And lovey-dovey and all that stuff.**

**Oh, also, this didn't make the five page cut. Its four and a half. but i just had to end it right here! I had too! T.T**

**I AM SO SORRY TO MAKING YOU WAIT  
****Please forgive me  
****This is Kiwi-san  
****Over and Out**

**I wonder how many people will read this? o.0.0.o**


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